FateBroken
by R0guePanda
Summary: (An AU of sorts, also has elements of humor and action in addition to other Genre's mentioned) The Holy Grail War. Some believe it to be the source of hope. Others, the source of despair and suffering. But now, a new group of servants have been summoned...but with no masters and no Holy Grail around? Who will be an ally, and who will be an enemy in this Non-Holy Grail War?
1. FateBroken V1 C1

Fate/Broken V1: The Beginning of Everything

C1: Introductions

(Fair warning. Some moments of this series may get intense, though there is a line for some areas I wont be crossing)

(Also, feel free to submit any feedback you may have! Especially praise!)

The Holy Grail. the subject of countless wars, an object that can grant wishes to the one who claims it. There are those who wish for eternal life, others for their family members, and all sorts of other things. Greed and selflessness, pride and modesty, rage and kindness. All have been witnessed in the Holy Grail Wars. And now, just recently, yet another Holy Grail War had ended.

Wishes that have changed the world have been done, and wishes that impacted only a single person have also been done. But always, there are seven servants. Sabre, Archer, Berserker, Castor, Lancer, Rider, and Assassin. Always these seven, though sometimes it ends up being two groups of seven for a total of fourteen.

This is what has always happened, with the Church involved, with the Mages Association involved, getting even normally unrelated people involved with this huge mess. But this time, something has changed...

This time, when the Servants wake up, there are no Masters. There are no Command Spells, no one to tell them what to do, and furthermore, no Holy Grail. Yes, the Holy Grail that is so vital, that is supposed to be the center of the war they fight, is also missing. And to make things weirder, many if not all of them wake up in atypical situations. They all possess the normal abilities of a manifested Heroic Spirit, but some wake up into lives that seem to have existed this whole time. Others wake up in the river, completely naked at first (Until they, you know, use mana to manifest clothes). Others might just appear in some park or bathroom or something, but it is still weird as there is often not a single mage around.

Yes, it is just the spirits. No bonds, no call of the Grail. But there is something...something that feels like it is important to them, as if it was a Grail perhaps. But what made it even stranger is the location they wake up in. An island that is part Japanese, part American, as if the two cultures had blended. It is in that city, in the city of New Tokyo, which definitely did not exist before but now has a history, and with it there are even new legends never heard before. History itself warped a little, but it appears that only the servants realize it.

But of course, first things first, let us start this at the very beginning of the story, in a way it would make sense.

==========3rd POV==========

The alarm clock, blaring as loud as it could be, came from the desk that was closer to the door then to the bed. The bed itself was elevated, with a ladder that led up to it. Below the place where the mattress lay and the sleeper slept, was various storage space for things like clothes, magic crafting supplies, spare cell phone chargers, and so on. However, the topic at the moment was not the staff that rested by the desk, nor the headphones by the bed, but it was the young boy in the bed.

Or rather, was in the bed.

"Owww!"

Having just woken up from accidentally falling out of bed in his sleep, a young blonde haired boy woke up laying completely naked on the top of his sheets. He had hit his head, but not on the floor but a nearby dresser which contained more miscellaneous objects. The boy was not used to the bed. Or rather...

"Wait...what the...where am I?"

The young boy, who looked to be around eleven, was confused. Of course, this was only to be expected. After all, he had no memory of going to sleep in this room, certainly not naked. But then, it got even stranger. Because while he knew what he was, he did not know exactly who he was. What he did know was that he was Caster. Heroic Spirit Caster Class. But, the boy could not remember his name, he only had a rough idea about his age, and there were specifics that were also a blank. He remembered that he was betrayed, he remembered a feeling of death. He remembered being taught magic, but also teaching magic. He remembered fragments of adventurers, but also moments of terror and hardship. He remembered that he made mistakes, but the specifics always just eluded him. It all felt fragmented in his head, it was irritating him. He even remembered drinking from the fountain of youth. However, there was a name. It was a fake name, he could sense it, Akira Romji.

"Aki-chan! Are you okay?!"

Suddenly, a woman came bursting into the room. She immediately looked upon Akira, and ran over to him, scooping him up with her arms and hugging him. The moment she touched him though, as if it was some sort of trigger, he remembered everything about this woman. Leena Reeves, the owner of where he lived. She was kind of like a caretaker, a very nice woman. She could be a bit pushy and scary at times though, but was otherwise extremely adaptable to contradict her occasionally strict nature. However, she was not always the best at dealing with people's privacy, at least when it came to personal space matters and especially when she thought it was some sort of health or safety risk not to. She could be completely ignorant of other people's feelings sometimes though, but contradictingly enough would notice the emotional states of others easily. And she had no dark or sinister underlying intentions, she was a very upfront and honest person.

For example, rushing into his room over a slight bump and scooping him into her arms while he was still undressed. Despite his squirming from his wish to escape the situation, even if he was a Heroic Spirit, he was a Caster. He would have to use physical reinforcement magic to escape, but doing that...well, as much as he wanted to escape, using combat magic on a civilian would bother him greatly.

"Leena-neechan! Please let...me...go!"

 _I just realized it now, but are we speaking Japanese? Right, of course. I remember hearing about it, about the summoning ritual. But, I don't feel the presence of my master...no, I don't feel connected to a master period. Was I some glitch or something? Well, I suppose I should be grateful that I have my freedom still. But, this is supposed to be a Holy Grail War...yet, I cant even sense the presence of the Grail...what the hell is going on? Right, well first I need to get dressed and do some information gathering._

"Pl..please let me go, Leena-neechan!"

"Aww, its okay Aki-chan. Seeing you like this lets me confirm if you are in good health though. But it looks like you need a bath, so I better give you one right away!"

"Wait, give me...no no no! I can take one on my own!"

"Nonesense! In the first place, you might have gotten a concussion just now! I need to look after you for a bit and make sure you are all okay!"

"But, but..."

"Besides, you are only a young boy. Its not like there is anything you need to be embarrassed about!"

 _This woman truly is the devil, smiling with such innocence while making it impossible to fight her! The devil for sure! Demonspawn!_

What made it worse was the person herself seemed totally unaware of these things. And of course, she was essentially Akira's guardian so she seriously believed in taking care of him and making sure he was alright to this level.

But once he had the bath and she scrubbed him all over, he was finally able to escape, get dressed, and get some breakfast. In addition to himself, and the manager Leena, there were three others who resided in this place with him. An engineer who seemed to be very good at handling tech despite being in his mid fourties, a high school girl in her second year that seemed to be quite knowledgeable on a variety of random subjects, and then there was a business man in his late twenties that always seemed to be in a rush. Their names were in that order, Okija Toura, Alexandria Torretta, and Michael Cross.

"Sounds like she captured you again, Aki-chan".

"Please stop her next time, ojichan".

"You really think that is possible, you two?"

"...please don't murder my hopes and dreams, Alex-neechan".

"Just appreciate the fact she cares about you too much, instead of the alternative where she is completely irresponsible and ignores obvious warning signs".

"Cross-san has a point".

"Uhg".

 _Interesting. The memories were overwritten to include me, and this is technically my first time speaking with them, but its so fluid and unhindered. Truly a high class magic, and it is even able to effect me despite my magic resistance...I mean, I am starting to remember them fluidly as well. Alex helping me out with the crossword puzzle sometimes, Okija insisting I call him Ojichan, Cross absolutely hating it when I called him Oniichan. The conversation was all quite nice and fluid indeed. It is like nothing happened at all. I can remember all these fake memories clearly, but my own memories...those are eroded in a sense. What happened to me?_

Akira could also remember other details, including those about his current identity. It appeared that after his parents died as per his backstory, he got engulfed in his studies. A child genius, he was able to graduate with ease. Is currently on summer break, is known as a skilled technician and coder. However, his magic skills trump all of that. In addition to that, he also has a medical condition indicating he has already stopped growing.

Of course, that was because he drank from the fountain of youth and attained an unaging child's body. From what he understood, the fountain of youth would keep someone a youth forever, and so often betrayed the expectations of those who sought it. Indeed, it gave them eternal youth, but that youth was them as a child, forever. In other words, getting a large amount of women and enjoying that throughout the decades would be quite difficult, which is apparently what most wanted it for.

Of course, Akira himself did not mind it. Getting mistaken as a child let him move about freely. He was old enough to move on his own, and young enough to go unnoticed by people. It was a perfect age for a mage who wanted to practice in secret.

"I'm leaving!"

"Watch out for kidnappers!"

"Look both ways before you cross the streets!"

"Don't cause any trouble!"

Akira just waved and smiled as he put his shoes on by the door and then left, making sure to lock the door behind him after securing his key. He only just woke up today, but as such he wanted to investigate what was going on. He wanted to confirm history, and other elements, of the current timeline. He already knew how to use the helpful device as a smartphone, and his staff was hidden away through magic. But when he was looking through this smartphone, he saw some very interesting Apps on there.

"Spellcraft in the form of Apps...interesting..."

And so, Akira Romji, unaware of his true name, set out into the world to uncover the mystery of who he was as the Castor and learn about the state of the world in it's current situation.

(If you have any OC suggests, feel free to suggest any! Right now, I only have a Castor, a Lancer, and an Assassin, so the others are open to suggestion!)


	2. FateBroken V1 C2

Fate/Broken V1 C2: Search Start

"I see...so, I wonder how many others in this era use this sort of magic. It truly is unique and ingenious, quite deceptive and tricky too...this Smartphone magic".

Akira was walking out among the streets, dressed in some long white cargo pants, a white jacket with blue trimming, a blue T shirt, and blue sneakers. He had a bit of a theme going on, but it was the first clothes he found in his room. Well, he found shorts first, but he felt like wearing something with a lot of pockets. Thus, the cargo pants.

"And now, I just need to find my way to the museum...I wonder, can I use this?"

Akira had been searching though his smartphone for awhile now. It seemed to be some new model created by an up and coming independent company called AstroTech, and it was dubbed a Netphone. Apparently it specialized in connections and flexibility. And his was apparently customized to be compatible with his own magic. He even had a memory of creating it, even though that memory should be false. Yet it existed, and it was definitely his work. It was as if it was less memory rewriting and more like his reality itself was rewritten.

And now, he was going to try out something new and unconventional.

"Luna, begin search. First off, any potent magical energies in the area?"

Luna was the name programmed into his phone, so if he used that name it would respond to his voice.

"There is a huge vortex around this whole island, invisible to the human eye. It is causing disruptions, but there appears to be no immediate dangers nearby".

"Indeed...so that was why no one was panicking then..."

Although it was invisible to the human eye, all Akira had to do was channel some mana into his eyes and he could see it plain as day. He was not sure why, but he felt very knowledgeable about tricks and deceptions, and so he felt it immediately when he stepped outside that there was an issue. He was not sure who, why, or how, but clearly something was going on in this city. In fact, he had the impression he could not leave this island even if he tried. But to further deepen the mystery, it seemed his Territory Creation skill had activated as well. It was as if someone had taken control of his body to do all the prepwork beforehand. Oddly enough, his Territory Creation covered the block he lived on and the surrounding blocks. From what he understood, it would conceal his location from tracking, give him moderate defense and offense bonuses, cause his mana to regenerate quicker, and so on. However, it does not boost the creation of magic items by any notable degree, it does not let him summon forth waves upon waves of minions. In short, there are countless other Casters who can create way more powerful territories.

Akira really felt like this entire situation was going against him.

"Alert! Presence Detected! Addendum: Presence Lost!"

Akira had been wandering around for awhile now as he thought of such things, but suddenly as he was getting close to the museum his phone warned him of a potential approaching threat. Yet, not even a second afterwards, it told him it was gone.

"Is it darting on the boundary? Or, is it the Assassin concealing itself?"

"Please remember that the vortex of mana over the city may be causing interference. There is enough shifting however to suggest anywhere between one to three other Servants are in this area. However, this may also be a flux, and there could be none".

"Why do I get the feeling I am not that lucky? Which is weird, given one of my Noble Phantasms that I don't even know why I have it".

"Keep in mind, a flux could accidentally create paranormal phenomenon that may endanger your life as well".

"Oh, well that is just perfect. So luck doesn't matter at all, either option could get me killed".

With this conversation going on between Akira and Luna, after checking to make sure the crossing light was good, he crossed the road and immediately headed towards the museum. Of course, he had not waited all that time, and was also using his phone to search for details. He had been looking for things on his Noble Phantasms, but both had names that were absolutely horrible in determining his own identity. For now he just went with Akira, but without knowing his own True Name, things could get dicey for him. His True Name could contain his strengths as well as his weaknesses. It could unlock missing memories that detail powerful magics he encountered. As such, he felt it was absolutely vital for him to learn these things.

Of course, he had a feeling it would not be easy. Otherwise, he would have probably figured it out from the Q&A he did with his phone earlier. That was why he was coming to this museum after all. Well, that and to learn more about the world he spawned into. He needed information in general, and as such he needed to find out more information.

He stepped into the museum, and found it packed with all sorts of things. Not just people, there were displays, entire walls with information. History, scientific. There was even a hall he ended up walking through full of mythological stories, such as those about King Arthur, the most famous knight that wielded Excalibur, or Bradamant who is considered to be one of the most famous female knights in literature. There were all these stories. And yet...

"As amazing as they are, none click with me. In the first place, I find it hard to believe throughout all the centuries, only adult heroes are mentioned. My memories might be foggy, but I vaguely remember a boy who was exceptional with magic from a young age, with the power to overthrow entire kingdoms...who was it...Merryl, Murrah...was it Merloin? No no. Whatever, I will remember it eventually".

"Indeed. Not to mention its getting quieter, so it should be easier for you to think".

"Quieter...huh, its true there are less people around, even though it was crowded a minute ago..."

In fact, the only one who was still in the room at the end of that sentence was an older man right next to him. No, Akira was absolutely sure there was no one right next to him a second ago either. Akira tried to pull away, but the man grabbed him by the shirt and lifted him off his feet, and used his entire arm to pin Akira's chest against the wall. THe moment he saw the man's face though, he felt something...something compelling. Something definitive. Something that could not be ignored.

"Assassin".

"Caster. But please, call me John Wilkes Booth, Akira-kun".

It was his first encounter with one of the most famous and infamous assassins in history, John Wilkes Booth. A man who is hated by many, but also loved and cherished by a number. A man Akira could only describe as despicable and hated.

And this first encounter was in an isolated location with a blade to Akira's throat.

(Assassin Revealed: John Wilkes Booth! I wonder if anyone saw that one coming? Well, he is considered heroic to various scum, but hated by most to the point that he could be a symbol for villainy...makes one wonder how it will come into play?)


	3. FateBroken V1 C3

Fate/Broken V1 C3: First Conflict

AN: So, a question was raised in a Review for Chapter 2 about the Container overwriting the Servant for Assassin and Caster. Allow me to explain. First off, there are no Masters. So lets just get that out there. What happened with Caster is that not just a body, but an entire history, identity, and so on was created for him upon awakening, so it is all only "him", but he recognizes that it was all implanted and warped into existence for him. A mystery onto who or what did that, and why. With Assassin, his method is still unknown, and it can be different this time around as the Holy Grail has not stabilized this situation. It could be the same as Akira, or it could be different. However, while Possession is indeed possible, I will say that Booth is too fragmented. He is not even close to his true original self anymore. If you want to know more then that, you will have to read further!

(Also, if someone wants to leave a review with their OC suggestions for Archer, Sabre, Berserker, or Rider, or maybe something different if you think you can provide something good enough to use, feel free to do so. I am also curious on what people think so far of our current Caster, Assassin, and other such people mentioned so far by this Chapter. I especially want to know if anyone has any bets on who Caster's identity truly is, because there is an official one set up that once you learn what it is makes a lot of sense)

Akira had gotten so wrapped p with discovering who he is, and updating himself of the history of the world, that he had made a grave error. An error so grave, it might just cost him his life here. He had forgotten to keep an eye out for other servants, and now he was faced with one of the most notorious assassins in history, John Wilkes Booth. The Assassin Servant, as he should be. Out of all the possible situations he could get into, this was by far the worst.

And now a knife was resting on his throat, and this man was standing in front of him.

"What a great find, I managed to locate the one I was looking for so easily. But then, I knew that someone would come here to investigate, and Caster would be the highest likely chance. You seem to be going by Akira Romji though, Akira-chan. But then again, your True Name seems to be muddy...and deep. Is it possible you don't remember it? That is it, isn't it? How interesting".

ANd it was only getting worse. Akira did not know his own True Name, but now this man in front of him, Assassin, did. Booth did. And this man, he rolled up one of Akira's sleeves all the way to his shoulder to reveal his bare arm. And then, while applying extra force to not just pin Akira in place but to put him in pain, he licked the entire arm from wrist to shoulder with a deranged expression.

"What the hell!?"

"Ah, I guess you don't know all that much about me yet. You see, I am hated by a large amount of the world, seen as a horrible scum, a racist, a murderer. But then, there are many, many others who share my beliefs. Who see me as a hero, a patriot, an agent of justice. As such, my mind, my existence as a Heroic Spirit is quite distorted you see. I can see inside myself, and inside others Caster-chan. Ah yes, and there have been so many fantasies of me, so many times I have been depicted as a superhero...with all sorts of abilities. So if you resist, I guess I will have to try them out. Of course, there are also the abilities of those who imagined me to be Devil Like".

"That sounds...like something broke..."

Akira was not sure the full story of Booth, in fact he was only learning what he could stealthily search up on his Smart Phone in that moment, but from what he could tell it was not good. It seemed like this Heroic Spirit was totally insane, as if he did not manifest properly. Akira had no idea what he planned to do with him, but given that Akira was still alive, he probably had some idea.

When Booth started lifting Akira's shirt up while having the same gaze as when he licked Akira's arm, Akira panicked and blurted out the question he was thinking.

"What the hell do you want, Assassin?!"

Stopped by Akira's shouting, he just gave Akira a smile. But it was a smile full of sadistic joy and pleasure.

"I want you to in essence, hack the Holy Grail this time and give all of it's power to me".

"The...the hell..."

"But of course, I do need you to stay loyal. So first, maybe I should get you undressed so you don't run away until I..."

"Get away from that boy!"

Interrupting Booth as he began to reach for Akira with his free hand again, his unique form of torture was interrupted by the shout of a woman. At the same time, a motorcycle could be heard from the doorway even though they were inside, and surely enough a woman riding a motorcycle with a lance in her hand seemed to come out of nowhere. She was just wearing jeans, a black jacket, a motorcycle helmet, and other easy to wear clothing that she could move well in, but her lance was distinct and powerful.

Booth attempted to dodge it while holding Akira, but it bumped him just ever so slightly and it sent him flying. The woman managed to grab hold of Akira, and placed him on the back of her motorcycle. He quickly held on, as she faced off against Assassin.

"Assassin. Of course it would be you who goes after an innocent child".

"Pfft, that so called innocent child drank from the fountain of youth. I saw it in his self, along with his true age. Though it seems his mentality has also been preserved to be at least a bit childlike. But I never thought I would meet two Heroic Spirits in one day, Lancer...no, I should call you Bradamant, one of the most famous female knights?"

"Tsk. It looks like he somehow has a skill that lets him determine someone's True Name".

Finally catching up with what happened, Akira chimed in at this time with a warning.

"He may also be able to view our Noble Phantasms and Skills as well! While there is two of us, we should take him down".

"Oh, but can you really afford to do that with all these people coming in".

Almost immediately, a large number of people began to flow into the room as he spoke. No doubt, he was the one who somehow got everyone to leave before, and now he got everyone to come back in. Lancer was forced to dismiss her "steed", the motorcycle. The two of them could only glare at Booth now, and he just smiled at them before running off into a thick crowd and forcing them to lose sight. He figured that Akira wouldn't attack him with witnesses around, and certainly the Lancer who was a knight would not risk injuring innocents to kill him. It was a perfect plan, and they had no choice but to accept his retreat.

However, he had to do this. An Assassin stood no chance against a Lancer in open combat, and even a Caster would be able to fight them in open Combat easily. Assassins were best at doing sneak kills, or sneak attack damage to weaken an opponent, and then go in for the kill, or more ideally, going after the Masters of the Servants. However, in this occasion, Masters did not exist. Yet, it appeared that the Assassin may have more power and ability then one would want to fight against, such as apparently being able to control crowds of people to assist him.

"Lets get out of here, before he somehow orders these people to stab us in the back".

"Agreed. Lets get outside and put some distance between us and this Assassin and get some lunch".

Nodding at each other's words, Lancer took Caster by the hand and the two fled the museum with haste. If their faces and hair color were similar, one might mistake them for a mother and son pair.

After escaping, Lancer summoned her motorcycle and a spare helmet and gave it to Caster. Caster immediately got on again, and the two drove off before Assassin ever had the chance of striking at them again.

"By the way, my full name is a bit long, so just call me Bray or Lancer".

"Sure, you can call me Akira or Caster".

"Alright, Akira-kun. Lets go get some lunch. I think we have a lot of questions for each other, and a lot of things we need to discuss".

(And now Caster, Assassin, and Lancer have all been introduced! I wonder who will show up next? Berserker? Sabre? Archer? Rider? Or will someone else appear first? Anyways, feel free to let me know what you think of the pool so far, and what you think! I hope you are enjoying so far!)


	4. FateBroken V1 C4

Fate/Broken V1 C4: Q&A

(So, because I had some more time today, I decided to release some more content. I don't expect I will be able to release this much every single day though)

A rather nice but popular café in the city of New Tokyo was Apollo's Diner and Café, which had a unique feel to it that made it feel less formal and business like, and more like a place that belonged to a friend you sometimes visit to chat with. It was a place where someone could get comfortable and talk about things, and meet up and have a pleasant meal without having to worry about formalities.

That was the kind of place it was. And on one of the outside tables were two people, or to be exact, a woman and a young boy who were eating some rather casual meals of bacon cheeseburgers and French fries, with ketchup, and the only thing that differed was their drinks. Lancer had an Iced Tea, while Caster had a chocolate milkshake.

The two had been exchanging information, about what they knew, how they felt, their lack of a Master, and other related things.

"I still cant believe you like, what, forty something? Man, I think every woman would want to use the Fountain of Youth. What was the Fountain of Youth anyways? Was it really a fountain?"

"Nah, it was a bath".

"A bath huh?"

"I don't remember the specifics of how I found it, but I do remember the others wanted to test it out so it was not poison, so they tore off my clothes and shackled me there for a whole week".

"...it takes a week to activate the Fountain of Youth?"

"Yeah, but in the end, it did not produce the result they wanted. It is called the Fountain of Youth for a reason, anyone who is subjected to it turns into a Youth forever. As in, they will look somewhere between eight to eleven years old forever".

"That does not sound like the Fountain of Youth in the stories".

"Well, that was the one I found. So yeah, all those women could enjoy it...but, it would be at the cost of being a child forever".

"I see...it sounds like a legend that has a moral".

"No, I found a journal inside it. It was built by a guy who believed Children possessed the most wisdom of all, since they were more honest about how they felt, they often say things without thinking of stupid politics or what not, and honestly state what they need and when they need it instead of being prideful and pushing through things unreasonably".

"I see...right, well then. I suppose we should probably get around to this next part of the conversation".

"You mean, our wishes that would have us be summoned for the Holy Grail?"

"Yeah. You have one, don't you? Some reason to want the Holy Grail, some goal you have right now?

Akira and Bray stared at each other for a bit, and then Akira just shrugged with a smile.

"Honestly, I don't remember all too well, but I think I wanted to live a life full on convenience. Even though I cant remember the specifics, I do remember always having to run around the place and experiencing unreasonably crazy things. Honestly speaking, even my vague memories that should be mine feel mismatched, I suspect because I cant remember certain details and critical pieces. Anyways, that said, I am set up with a new life here that I enjoy. People who care for me, though one is a little too extreme, and I am enjoying life. So honestly, I just want to stay in this life".

The moment he spoke those words, Lancer could not contain her joy and smiled back at him. She was extremely please with that answer.

"It is similar for me. I wanted to have a world where men and women were equal, where we would both decide on government matters, get jobs, wear whatever we wanted to, and be respected. This world has all that, maybe even more. So what I want isn't a wish either, but it is to keep living here, in this world, with this life. Although, admittedly unlikely you, I spawned with clothes and a motorcycle granted, but no identity...though, it might have been amusing if our locations got swapped".

Hearing those words, Akira understood what she meant and blushed. Bray had appeared in the middle of traffic, in front of a red light. No one seemed to notice she appeared out of nowhere, and did not find it odd. However, she had spawned fully dressed riding a motor cycle. Even if their were clothes in his room, although he could not remember the specifics Akira remembered he went to bed dressed in his previous life, which meant he spawned naked. In other words, she was saying it would have been funny is he spawned naked in the middle of the street.

"Bray-neechan!"

"Sorry sorry. But you know, as a test and a haze for new riders, sometimes the older knights would make the younger ones ride a horse completely naked as an initiation, and to help them bond with their horse for the first time. Well, I myself skipped that due to me superior skill...but you know, with your behavior and attitude, maybe I should knight you?"

"Please stop teasing me!"

"Alright alright, sorry sorry. It's just, its nice to be able to have fun like this again after I died once already. Everyone was so serious in the past, there was never any time for jokes it felt like. And I always had to worry about people taking me seriously, so when I overdo it please don't get mad".

"Oh, ok...wait, did you just blatantly say you would do it again?!"

"Awww, you didn't fall for it".

Akira looked around, trying to think of some way to get revenge on Lancer for teasing him, when he thought of something.

"Hey, Lancer".

"Yeah?"

"How are you paying for all of this?"

Suddenly, Lancer seemed to freeze up and her face stiffened. She tilted her head slightly, and she looked like she just swallowed a bug.

"..what do you mean?"

"Well, if you spawned without an identity, where are you getting the money?"

"Well, uh, you see, children should not worry about such matters".

Akira seemed to catch onto something given how she was acting, and with a mischievous smile, leaned in closer and whispered his next question.

"By any chance, did you do something...unknightly?"

This question made her go quite red in the face, not from anger but embarrassment. He nailed it right on the head.

"..alright, I admit it. When I was first exploring the city, I accidentally wandered into a back alley and ended up in a fight with some vulgar repulsive biker gang scum. Well, since I am a Heroic Spirit, and they were mortals, even if I did not use any magic or abilities I crushed them easily, and uhh...well...instead of taking them into the authorities...I stole all their wallets, money, and jewelry. And...then I pawned the rings and necklaces and bracelets they had to a place that melts down metals for more cash, so..."

Akira could not help but start giggling excessively from this story. In other words, the noble Lancer looted expensive metal objects from people she looted, and then fenced it off for cash at a place that was probably shady, to get money.

"Sh..shut up! It was a serious situation! I needed money, and its paying for your food, so shut up!"

"Haha...alright then, sorry sorry. But, be careful who you make fun of in the future, okay?"

"Yeah, I got it...well, they were criminals anyways so its not that bad...don't make that face at me!"

Akira couldn't help but smirk, but as he was responding his mind wandered to a more serious issue.

"Its facial expressions, not that easy to control...speaking of control, I suppose the next person we should be wary of..."

"Is Berserker, right?"

"Yeah, Berserker. Sabre has the chance of being stronger, but...Berserker will be the most problematic without a Master. Hell, even with a Master Berserkers are unstable, but without one?"

"Yeah, by far, the one we need to be worried about next is Berserker. Assassin is dangerous as well, according to what we researched he killed someone as important as something called a President after all. But, Berserker is by far the most troublesome. Without anyone to control him, he will go out of control and likely cause a lot of damage and gather attention".

"Yeah. Our best bet is to go as unnoticed by the Mages Association and the Holy Church as much as possible. It would help us establish our normal lives. Even if they find out about us eventually years from now, if we can prove we can stay hidden in society without drawing attention to ourselves, they wont see us as a risk and wont come after us, at least as much. Which means, locating and dealing with Berserker has to be our highest priority. To protect our dreams of living in this world as free people".

"So then, I guess this time around, we will have factions".

"Based on our goals. There does not seem to be a Grail, though I do sense something in this city that is drawing us in...but, I cant pinpoint it".

"At least you can sense it better then me. I cant even sense where it is. I understand I have to stay in the city, but I don't even have a vague idea as the location. This is probably why Assassin was coming after you, and why others might as well. As it stands, this time the objective may not be to fight over the Grail, but to find it".

"You want to find it also?"

Akira looked at her a bit skeptically. Given her goals, he assumed that she had no interest in finding it.

"I want to find it with you. I want you to do the same thing as the Assassin did, but with a different end result. I want you to hack into the Grail, or whatever summoned us, and disconnect us from the Grail. So that whatever happens, we can continue to exist even after the Grail is gone".

Hearing her response, AKira sighed with relief. It was true. Although it appeared there was no Holy Grail, as no one felt the connection the Holy Grail should have, something did call to them. Akira and Bray were still Caster and Lancer. They were bound to something that summoned them most likely, but they were not bound to masters that kept them in this world, but rather they were manifested in the world itself. In this unique situation, it was possible for them to break free of the Grail and live natural lives in this world, although Akira was probably never going to die thanks to his experience with the Fountain of Youth.

"So what do you say, Aki-chan? You want to help this oneesan enjoy a nice casual life with you?"

"Is Aki-chan really a popular nickname for my name...whatever, this Akira Romji, this Caster, promises to help you. Let us continue to fight not for a wish, not for some Holy Grail. Let's fight for the happiness we have in our lives, and for the happiness we want to make".

The two nodded at each other with smiles, and for what may be an extremely unusual in this already unusual situation, an alliance was formed.

And then, if timed as a bad joke as they just finished eating their meal, and having already paid at the start, a large scale explosion was heard coming from the port nearby. And more then that, but a roar could be heard. Something that Akira seemed to recognize immediately.

Lancer was already at the motorcycle however, and was holding out Caster's helmet. Akira came over and took it with a smirk.

"Didn't you just say you wanted a casual life as well?"

"Casual and convienent, the same as you. But I am still a knight. I cannot ignore danger, and that roar and explosion..."

"Yeah, given we all appeared today, and the ruckus...it might be Berserker...or a Dragon".

"A...Dragon? Well then, I guess they need the help of a Knight and an Adventurer. That is why you are coming right?"

Akira just smiled as he got on, and without waiting for his answer, Lancer sped off towards the danger.

"I guess just because we want one thing, does not mean we can avoid the other. And certainly, I guess neither of us can help rushing towards someone in need".

And so the two, Lancer and Caster, rode off towards their first big fight of this Non-Holy Grail War.

(I feel like people are going to ship Caster and Lancer after this...but please, people can just be friends and act this way you know? Anyways, some exciting stuff is coming up! So favorite and subscribe to keep updated! And please leave any comments, remarks, and feedback in reviews please! I want to know what you think, and furthermore if anyone has figured out who Caster is!)


	5. FateBroken V1 C5

Fate/Broken V1 C5:

AN: So, I saw something rather...interesting, and peculiar. Somehow, Chapter 4 has more views and visits then Chapter 3...even though a lot of important stuff happened in Chapter 3. Not sure how to react to that. Anyways, had some spare time so I decided to see about getting another chapter out before I got busy by something.

By the time that Lancer and Caster arrived at the scene, it was already not looking too great. Or rather, what little they could see was bad. There was fire everywhere, and as a result there was smoke covering a huge part of the port. It seemed like no one knew what was going on, and for now they were saying things like a freak electrical fire and explosions and that there was still hostile and volatile material in the area, so they were keeping people away.

However, it was sure that if they did not do something quickly, the Mages Association would likely send an entire cleaning crew here to deal with it, or the Holy Church, or someone else with a lot of power. Simply put, it was far from a good situation they were dealing with. And while there was no direct evidence...

"It is definitely a Dragon".

Caster was absolutely sure that it was a Dragon.

"How the hell do you know that for certain?"

Lancer however questioned it as they arrived at the scene on her motorcycle.

"I...I don't know. It must involve one of my sealed memories. Given that fragments are still there, it is not like they are all gone. Though they do feel all consuming".

"I wonder if they are not just forgotten, but sealed by something that thought they were dangerous to you".

"Maybe...for now, lets focus on the Dragon. Because we cant see it, we cannot confirm if it is Berserker or not".

"Could a Dragon appear otherwise?"

"Do Servants get summoned without a Holy Grail?"

"Fair point. Still, for a Dragon to appear now of all times...it would be nice if we have Sabre or Archer on our side. I don't see how we can fight it without getting it exposed".

Although Lancer herself had intense firepower, and Caster was good with attack magic, the fact was that they were against a Dragon. There was no doubt this would be a difficult fight, and they had to find a way to keep it hidden.

"I can help with that".

"Eh, you ca...what the!"

Lancer was going to refute that, but before she could she felt a huge amount of mana get released. At the same time, the Caster known currently as Akira took out a staff out of nowhere. But in his hand, the presence of it felt overwhelming. Everyone nearby immediately felt the need to run away, because it was as if the air itself suddenly became thick and heavy.

"Dimensional Divider!"

Akira raised his staff into the air with both hands, and then slammed the bottom end into the ground. A ring appeared around the entire area, engulfing Lancer, Caster, and the area where the Dragon was, and then the three of them ended up appearing in a completely new setting. It was a ravine with rock walls on either side that were narrow enough to block the escape of the Dragon. Furthermore, with all the smoke and fog gone, they could finally look directly at the Dragon...

But there was no reaction.

"I guess it is not Berserker. Still, we need to eliminate this Dragon somehow".

"Hold on, was that not a huge Magic Aki-chan?! That should have drained you badly!"

"It's fine, I can still go on. I have plenty for attack Magic, what we absolutely have to deal with is the Dragon...but first, dodge!"

Akira quickly called out as the Dragon noticed they were the only two living things left in the area after it had changed, and it breathed fire at them. It truly was a Dragon after all, but the canyon walls thinned out at the top and were solid, so the Dragon was trapped in this place. Bray could not see any route for it to escape in, but Akira could not keep it in here forever. Akira used his magic to fly through the air, dodging serious damage, while Bray used her motorcycle to avoid the breath. In terms of ability to damage, Lancer was superior. But Lancer needed to get close to the Dragon to pierce it with her lance, and that proved to be difficult. Akira constructed a large scale magic array, but the Dragon caught on and fired at him, preventing him from completing his spell.

 _But still though, his ability to use Magecraft is phenomenal. Other then the staff and the smart phone, I don't think I have seen him use some sort of catalyst or booster once. What is his true identity to hold such potential?_

Lancer thought of such things while trying to keep an eye on the Dragon to avoid its attacks, but the Dragon seemed to catch on and got an idea. It moved one of it's feet and it's tail to block escape routes, and then prepared to roast an entire region of ground to get Lancer.

"I don't think so, lizard".

And yet a voice seemed to cut through the area at that time. This voice coincided with an arrow that flew beautifully through the air and landed into the eye of the Dragon, causing it serious pain and disrupting it's attack on Lancer. At the same time, a man that wore a strange triangle shaped green hat hopped down from a ledge. Somehow, he managed to enter the Realm Akira created.

"Archer, at your serv..."

"So Archer is Robin Hood then? Wonderful. Thanks, we really need your help with this".

Interrupting Robin's introduction however was Akira, who had finished a large scale lightning spell and sent it into the Dragon using the arrow. The arrow itself did not survive, but it did tremendous damage. Lancer also managed to get close, but ended up getting swatted away by the Dragon's tail during its fit of pain.

"How did you find us?"

"A Dragon appeared, so I thought it might be Berserker. Given that there seem to be no Masters, Berserker is the highest concern right?"

"...I guess we were not the only ones who thought that".

"It is kind of obvious. Now, how about we kill us a Dragon?"

"The eyes are the weakness. I will put in another arrow, can you hit it with lightning?"

Suddenly, elemental lightning seemed to appear all over Akira's body.

"Yeah. Alright, lets finish this up so we can talk".

Robin, Bray, and Akira looked back at the Dragon...but Akira felt there was something off with Robin appearing by coincidence like this. Of course, it was something as big as a Dragon...but Akira felt like that Robin had some sort of underlying purpose being here. However, now was not the time to question it. The Dragon was the bigger threat.

"Robin, get ready to fire right into it's eye. Lancer, when it gets distracted, go in and pierce through it's chest with your lance. I will prepare a lightning spell for each, we will kill it with this attack".

"I don't think you will get a chance...it is coming back to its senses and I think its staring at you. And it will be expecting my arrow this time, I wont be able to hit it this time".

"Our odds for this are not very good..."

Akira began to levitate further off the ground as this was said, and a smile appeared on his face.

"Then I will just have to use a Noble Phantasm that I can remember...and change our odds".

"Wait, you don't remember your True Name but you remembered your Noble Phantasm".

"One of them at least, and it's not very clear on the indication of my identity...alright, activate Fool's Luck!"

"Eh?"

"What?"

Both Lancer and Archer looked confused. That was only natural, after all Casters were typically knowledgeable people who possessed powerful Magecraft from intense studying. To have a Noble Phantasm that was called "Fool's Luck" was not something a Caster should have, but furthermore, that Noble Phantasm actually could be used to describe too many people. As such, Akira's Noble Phantasm that he activated honestly was not good for identifying who he was.

"He seriously doesn't know his True Name?"

"Yeah...I don't know if its just him, or this atypical summoning though".

The Dragon shot out a breath attack that would obliterate the whole area they were in...but then, in a weird twist of fate, it accidentally got a tickle in it's throat and the attack exploded right in his face. At the same time, Akira finished a large scale spell which wrapped itself around his staff as he began to fly at super high velocity toward it's face.

The Dragon reacted by trying to swipe at it, but suddenly it slipped as it tried to move it's foot to help with the attack. As such, it fell backwards and missed while Akira managed to get up closer to it's face.

And then at that moment, a projectile flew past Akira and hit it right in the eye. But it was not an arrow, but an entire lance. Akira flew right up to it as the Dragon saw where he saw, and he swung his staff down on the lance driving it into the Dragon's skull and sending enough lightning through it to completely decimate it.

"That was surprisingly quick".

Robin could not help but comment on that it did not take them very long to kill the Dragon.

"Its because this Dragon was already tired. Honestly speaking, this Dragon was not at full power. It was tired. If it had been at full power, it would have taken us a lot longer".

Unfortunately, Akira knew why and explained it. As for why it was unfortunate, it meant there was something that had fought this Dragon first.

"Likely, we only missed him by a second".

Catching onto Akira's words, Lancer gulped. There was one person who should have raised a commotion, but had not yet. Someone who could possess the strength to tire out a Dragon. Someone who was still missing.

"Berserker. Are you saying whoever the Berserker is right now, they could single handedly fight a Dragon that took the three of us?"

"I think so. It is the only reason why the Dragon was so sluggish. Besides, if it was Sabre, there would likely be cut marks. It was not Assassin, and I don't think Rider would be able to solo a Dragon. Archer is with us, and no way could Archer solo a Dragon either, no offense".

"None taken. YOu are right, no way I could solo that thing. Actually, I got here earlier, but I decided to wait for backup. I figured someone would come after all, we are Heroic Spirits. Besides, I felt it was a good way to meet some of the others and hopefully get answers. But to think I would meet Caster though, what luck".

"Luck?"

"You are the only one right? Due to that vortex of magic in the air, only you can locate whatever summoned us? The Holy Grail?"

"...you want the Grail for something? We don't even think there is a real Holy Grail yet".

"That may be so, but I have some ideas...mainly, about what I have seen so far in this world. But shouldn't we exit this realm and leave before the authorities get here?"

"Yeah, besides...we need to rest up. Otherwise, whatever battle that comes next will come in harder. I will return us to our previous locations, so hold on".

Akira gathered his mana together, and used a magic to return them back to their previous positions as they left the Realm he created. In truth, he could have actually transported them together, but there was a reason he didn't. The moment they returned, Lancer and Caster turned and faced each other.

"He is lying, or at least hiding something".

The two spoke the exact same words to each other before fleeing the scene.

(Like hell a Dragon would be that easy to beat! Berserker softened it up for them! But it has gotta make you wonder, just who the hell is Berserker who can solo fight a Dragon? I guess you will just have to keep reading to find out!)


	6. FateBroken V1 C6

Fate/Broken V1 C6: The Mysterious Archer

AN: So finally, we will get some POV changes! Well, I stated in the start a POV, so it should have been expected.

==Assassin POV==

I walked down the darkened tunnel, keeping sure to conceal my presense at all times. Even if they did claim I was unstable, even if those two seemed to get away, I would find them sooner or later. Besides, I needed Caster. Everyone did. His Magic Resistance would allow him to ignore whatever mystical jamming was preventing us from sensing the Grail, and his Magical Affinity would allow him to locate the Grail. In other words, Caster was the only one who could actually find the Grail.

That made him prime target number one. I was close with my method, but then that accursed Lancer came in and stole him away for her own purposes. She claimed to be acting according to the Knights Code, but everyone who is summoned by the Holy Grail has a Wish they want fulfilled. There would be no real reason to summon them otherwise, as they would not be properly motivated. In other words, that Lancer had a secret she was hiding.

Most likely, Lancer was playing the long game. Gain Caster's truth, get him to locate the Grail for her, and then who knows what would happen afterwards. The Grail only has the ability to grant one wish, from what I know. But, normally one would have to fight over it. And in truth, everyone still does. I will, Lancer will, even Caster will find a need to use the Grail. No, given what I saw inside him, he may have the most need of all.

Everyone always has something that the Grail can offer. But the Grail can offer things no one else can give. And thus, controlling the Grail is key. I had no idea how things would turn out, but I planned to be the only one alive to use the Grail. But first, it meant that I had to get them to fight each other. And for that, I needed to find Sabre. Although using Berserker would be nice, ultimately Berserker was unpredictable and uncontrollable. I didn't even remotely know how to find or locate him because of that, let alone how to deal with him. As the Assassin, I understood that I could not fight Berserker. At least not alone.

So that left me with Sabre. Rider too was around somewhere, but I already had a feeling of where Sabre would be. Although I had no idea of how to sense the Holy Grail, my sense for sensing other Heroic Spirits was better then Aki-chan's. And I had been feeling a powerful yet refined force hiding in the tunnels beneath the city.

That was what led me to where I was currently, closing in on Sabre. I was sure of it. I could have considered Archer as well, but somehow I felt like that might be dangerous at the moment so I focused on Sabre. Someone had to take out Lancer after all, though in the end I would need one of them to deal with Berserker safely, whoever Berserker was.

Finally, I started to get closer to the target when...

"Who the hell are you? You are rather persistent, you know...Assassin".

Somehow, despite using my Presence Erasure, someone sensed me. Someone managed to bypass the Assassin stealth, a feat not so easily done.

"How did you know I was coming?"

"Someone else came by earlier, actually, and told me he saw you following me. Now, tell me. What are you here for Assassin?"

 _Someone else came before me? I never sensed another presence...was it another Assassin? Could it be whatever happened with the Grail disabled the limiter on how many of a class could be summoned? I need to grab Caster and find the Holy Grail quickly...and as for Sabre..._

The Sabre that was in front of him was not King Arthur, or any Knight of the Round Table. However, it was a woman of very high note. Possibly one of the most famous in history, Jean D'Arc. Also known as Sabre.

"I wanted to offer you a deal, regarding the Grail. Rather, I knew who the Caster is that can find the Holy Grail, and I thought we could make an alliance, or a truce at least, to get it".

"Why should I trust a vulgar mine like yourself. And don't lie, I know one when I see one".

"Because as much as I want to use Caster to find the Holy Grail, I was honest to him about it. Right now, he is under the thumb of Lancer, who is lying to him in order to use him to find the Grail. I am sure she already spun some story to make it sound like she didn't want to use the Grail, or to use it for his or both their benefit. But you see, Caster is someone who drank from the fountain of youth. In other words, not just his body, part of his mind is also still a child. So as much as you may see me as vulgar and wrong, Sabre, can you honestly stand by and let that boy be lied to? Lancer is currently building herself up as a friend, no, she may even be trying to seduce Caster, and imagine how much that will hurt Caster once it is discovered? At least I was honest with my approach".

As Assassin spun his words and described the situation, when he brought up Caster's age that seemed to stir a reaction from Sabre. Of course, he figured it would. After all, he could see that Sabre was a kind hearted person who, along with the innocents, also fought for children. With this spoken request, she would have no choice but to go and intervene. Sabre and Lancer were both going to be troublesome people for him, and of course there appeared to be whoever tipped off Sabre he was coming. ANd of course, he also gave her the location of Caster and Lancer.

 _Most likely, that person was Rider. It would fit, a Rider with a beast might have had one with superior hearing or smelling capabilities. That could still potentially detect me. Although we should probably expect anything this time around, Rider might just be a hindrance I have to deal with too. But, I will still need Rider, and whoever survives between Lancer and Sabre, to deal with Berserker, so I will have to play my cards right._

In terms of playing their roles properly, the one who was probably playing their role the best was Assassin. Working out how to eliminate each of the other Servants, considering who to use when and who to eliminate. The Assassin this time could be called one of the most dangerous Assassins of all time.

As Sabre's blade appeared in her hand, and her armor formed around her, she immediately began walking toward the group in question...

==UNKNOWN POV==

"So this is New Tokyo huh?"

The voice of a young boy with blonde hair spoke out as he departed a private plane with fancy gold paint. Behind him was two butlers and six maids, and then four more men wearing suits, with a vague bodyguard appearance. The boy was around the same age as Akira, and the maids were all young and beautiful, while the men were older and reliable. Many of the bodyguards were concealing very powerful weapons that would probably be considered illegal to have normally.

"Indeed sir, this city and this island have been around for a long time now, and today it is a flourishing city. Enough that the Mage's Association and the Holy Church, as well other independent organizations, all have branches here".

"I wonder about that...anyways, it seems like some interesting things are happening near the port...and, I am quite hungry. Perhaps it is time to go and explore the city. I already have an idea of where I will be staying, while you all prepare everything else".

The boy said that, before jumping up into the air and onto the rooftop of a nearby building. He sniffed the air, and a fierce and sharp look entered his eyes.

"Yeah, those two are definitely here. Oh you big idiot, what have you gotten yourself into now...hold on, this aura...well now, this is just getting more and more interesting..."

Noticing something in the distance, the boy decided to go take a look and investigate the matter. He was not normally this incident, but the presence of a certain something...a certain someone...had caught his attention.

"This is going to be fun".

And so, the moment at which certain people would meet began to creep closer and closer...


	7. FateBroken V1 C7

Fate/Broken V1 C7: The Mysterious Archer

==3rd Person POV==

"This is the place you want to talk in? A Diner?"

The three of them, Caster, Lancer, and Archer, were standing in front of what appeared to be a traditional American diner. As in, extremely traditional. Not to mention the three of them looked completely unrelated, so to be exact, it was an extremely traditional looking American Diner with thee strangers outside it. One was a young and short blonde haired boy with an innocent appearance, the other was a woman who was there with a motorcycle, and the last was a man who was wearing modern clothes with the exception of a signature green triangle shaped hat. If the police were to do a search for these people.

"Yeah, right in here. There even seems to be a spot that gives a nice view".

"Oooh, can't wait! that battle got me hungry again! Here, I will get it!"

As Archer pointed to the booth he wanted to sit in, Caster ran ahead and gripped the handles of the door for a moment, before he swung them wide open and spun around. Archer just pat his head as he passed him.

"Thank you".

"Thanks Caster".

Lancer followed suit, and then Caster followed from behind. They headed over to the booth that Archer pointed out, and looked out the window to see that the sun was already a good way past the halfway point. Caster just up and sighed as Archer took his seat first. As a result, Lancer and Caster took the seats opposite from him.

"After I eat, I better start heading home. Otherwise, the others will get worried for me".

"Wait, Caster started with a different identity?"

"Yeah. Unlike you all, I got a place to sleep".

"...so unfair".

At that point, a waiter with auburn hair came up to them and asked for their meal. Including the waiter, they now had four different hair colors, so it was something to laugh at.

"Welcome to Rin's Diner, what would you like to get today?"

The three of them then placed their orders, and after which the waiter left and the Archer looked across the table at the two of them.

"So, I guess while we wait for food we should get to business then. First off, what are your two plans for the Holy Grail?"

"Honestly, we couldn't care less about the Grail or wishes. However, what I have been asked to do is look for a way to disconnect me and Lancer from the Grail completely. Normally, us Heroic Spirits cannot stay manifested in the real world forever, but this time feels different. We have no Masters binding us here, and yet we are able to move around. I even have an entire life built around me this time, so it is potentially possible this time is different. That we can stay behind, and live our lives here. That is what me and Lancer want".

Hearing that explanation, Archer could not help but flinch.

"You two are really uninterested with the Grail? Seriously?"

"Yeah".

"Completely".

"I see...and you honestly expect me to believe that? No one gets summoned without a wish they have for the Holy Grail".

"But there is no Holy Grail is there?"

"Maybe not yet, but you feel it too right? There is something in this city...something that is calling out to us. Maybe its not a Holy Grail, but there is a Grail. There is something that we will end up fighting over".

"Not necessarily. If its not a Holy Grail, but some fluke, I should have an easier time accessing it. Besides, something this different...it seems too dangerous to trust. We should be wary of it".

"But then, you can find it can't you? The Grail?"

"Sort of. Its unclear even for me. I wont be able to sense it well until I get close. But once I do, I will be able to disable it".

"The question is though, will your partner really let you do that. Lancer, you honestly expect me to believe both of you have matching goals? That you are not just using him to find the Grail yourself".

"I am not that good of a liar".

"Oi oi, are you two really going to fight right now? Can we please not?! Anyways, what is your goal for the Grail Robin?"

As they conversed, the waiter eventually brought them their food and drinks they ordered, and then placed a ketchup bottle on the table. Well, he actually accidentally spilled a bit of it as it slipped out of his hand and the cover came off, but that was an unimportant detail no one really needed to know.

"My Goal...its simple. No more wealthy. I want to wish that all the money wealthy people gained get distributed to the poor and needy".

"Oh, that sounds ni..."

"Caster, we should leave. This man is too dangerous".

Caster was about to give a compliment, but Lancer suddenly stopped him as her eyes narrowed at Archer.

"Wait, what?!"

"That wish, that first part...he does not just mean they lose their wealth...he meant no more wealthy as in they all die as well".

Hearing that, Caster chocked in surprise. Meanwhile, Archer just frowned a bit while crossing his arms.

"It appears you are rather observant. Yes. The people who collect wealth only for themselves, will just try to do so again. Even if I wish for that wealth to be distributed, they will steal it back up. It will only repeat itself. Only if they all die will the wish be perfect".

Archer seemed to give up trying to lie at that point, but he did smirk a bit.

"But if you are going to call me out on it, then you should not be deceiving the boy yourself Lancer. You plan to use him all the same. Well, no matter, you will help me no matter what Caster".

"Why would I do that?!"

"Because your a nice kid, and I am sure you don't want to blow the both of you up. You see, Archers also train as hunters. And hunters often need to set up traps. It took me awhile to prepare, given this is a public eating establishment, but...well, I am a Heroic Spirit. And you two are sitting on pressure bombs".

Lancer immediately paled when she heard that, as she understood what it meant. In other words, if the two of them moved at all from where they were, they would get blown up by bombs. And to make it worse, there were innocent civilians around. It appeared that whatever was happening this time, this Grail War was not going to be like any others before it.


	8. FateBroken V1 C8

Fate/Broken V1 C8: The Explosive Situation

"So much for honor, huh? Isn't Robin Hood supposed to be a good guy?"

"I am a good guy. But, the ideal good guy, the perfect Jack the Protagonist? That does not exist. Legends are often idealized, but they are not always true. Things get corrupted, or left out. But here is a truth for you. Even in the world today, the rich rule over the poor. They live in fancy mansions filled with gold, while there are children out there starving. So yeah, why shouldn't I do this? Ask any officer, or hell, these US marines I heard of if honor and trust can really always be relied on? I bet they would rather rely on their weapons, because this world is still corrupt and untrustworthy!"

Caster was frightened by the situation. Not just the bomb thing that sort of shocked him, but moreso the fact that Robin Hood was clearly not acting the way he should be. When he thought about it, John Wilkes Booth may have also been acting weird. And maybe, could something be wrong with Lancer as well? His own memories were corrupted, so he had to wonder if all of the servants summoned didn't get messed up in some capacity.

Given what kept happening, it seemed likely. But also, they all had this obsession with the Grail it seemed. The Grail, and himself, The Caster who can find the Grail. Of course, that was because of his magic resistance, magic affinity, and his ability to create Magic Items. Given he would know the most about Magic and the Grail, going for the Caster to get answers made sense.

But Robin Hood setting up bombs inside a diner to take them hostage and force cooperation and the location of the Grail? That seemed way too off. Caster was sure about it now, Archer and Assassin both were corrupted during the summoning. Himself too, with his memories, also got corrupted. And could it be true about Lancer? Caster still believed she was someone he could rely on, but was that because she had been corrupted and changed to be more agreeable to his own goals perhaps?

However, it was clear that they were right to not trust Archer from the beginning.

"So, you were lying all along. Well, I knew it too, but I was hoping it wasn't for some evil reason".

Caster snapped his fingers, and suddenly the diner around them melted into nothingness and they were standing in a grassy field. It was a different setting, but without a doubt this was the same Dimensional Realm he created when he used Dimensional Divider earlier. This was magic, but what Archer was not sure was when he cast it. He knew that he had dismissed it back at the port, which meant he recast it at a point.

"Unless..."

Archer remembered when Caster ran ahead. He gripped the doors tightly before he opened them. _Was it then...so then, he replicated the entire Diner in his Dimensional Realm in order to trick me into confessing. Not just that, but he even intermingled the worlds so that the food would be served and I would not notice...this brat, he is sharp...or rather, smart. From what I can tell, it was Lancer who told him to do something on this level. Likely if he was alone, I might have been able to trick him._

Archer already jumped back, and summoned his bow with an arrow notched. Caster at the same time deployed his staff, and Lancer her lance. It was two versus one, and Lancer who could get up close to him with Caster to fight at ranged was not very good match up. Although as Archer, he possessed a high magic resistance, and powerful attacks himself, Caster could resist his Magic Arrows and Lancer would beat him at damage once she got close range. Lancer was also very fast as Lancers often had some sort of steed, since that is how Lances work.

The two launched their attack against Archer at once. Caster, who recognized Archer's Magic Resistance, instead raised up three large rocks using spatial magic and threw them all at him. Not only that though, he used water magic to freeze the area around and under Archer, and shot several thunderbolts at his direction to boot. It seemed that he had a mastery of multiple different magics, a Jack of a Trades as it were.

Although Archer had plenty of Magic Resistance, getting hit with a thunderbolt would still hurt. And because magic was only used to fling the rock and create the ice, his Magic Resistance would be useless against blocking those attacks. Furthermore, Lancer was charging right at him so if he dodged those attacks he would leave an opening where she would pierce him. It would be an extremely quick fight ending with his death.

Yet before anything landed, with the sound of shattering glass, the dimensional realm fell apart and they were standing in the middle of an alley. It was because of how they moved while in the Dimensional Realm that they were not standing in front of the Diner, but for someone to cut through a dimensional barrier...well, there were not many who could do that.

"Sabre!"

And one of those were Sabre, who happened to be the culprit this time. The moment she appeared, several people got an alarm in their head as they recognized her as she interrupted the fight and broke the Dimensional Realm. But it was not Archer she attacked, but Lancer.

"Damnit!"

Lancer was forced to block the attack and succeeded, but it meant stopping her attack on Archer. Furthermore, she was knocked off her motorcycle.

"I won't let you corrupt Caster and the Grail!"

"The hell...fuck, Assassin!"

Realizing the only single person who could have possibly been behind this, she cursed the Assassin as she blocked the followup strike from Sabre. Meanwhile, Archer used this chance to dodge the attacks coming from Caster and then fired arrows of his own at the boy to try and injure him. Caster was able to put up a triple layered thick magic shield, which managed to dodge the arrows from Robin's bow.

"Activate, Plunder!"

Robin focused on the staff that he saw him using mainly and attempted to use an ability that was his Noble Phantasm, Plunder, which would let him plunder the Weapons, even Noble Phantasms, from his enemy and use them himself. In other words, he was going to weaken his opponent. And yet, the moment he tried, it was as if a huge headache came from nowhere and he felt like he experienced several memories chaotically, though due to some sort of interference he could not make sense of them.

But it meant that it was not going to be possible to steal Caster's staff with Plunder, which should be impossible.

Yet it did serve as a distraction for a new party that entered the fray, someone who appeared out of nowhere and attacked Caster with a gun and dagger in hand. The gun fired some sort of bullet that bypassed defenses and forced Caster to dodge, and the dagger tried to slash at his wrist, likely to make it harder to use it. Assassin was trying to disable Caster, and Archer understood he was likely also planning to use Caster to search for the Grail.

However, this let Archer notch two arrows at once, and quickly coated a special paralytic poison on them. He fired the two of them at Caster and Assassin, and then used his Crossbow Noble Phantasm on his arm to fire a crossbow bolt coated with the same poison.

Caster dodged, but that was actually a response to dodge Assassin's attack and had not even realized that Archer fired. Assassin did recognize it however and dodged purposefully. However, the Crossbow bolt that was headed towards Caster was something he would be unable to dodge.

But then, that was intercepted by a sword that came out of nowhere, flying down from the sky and slashing the bolt in two, deflecting it as the sword plunged into the ground.

"Oi oi, you all started this game without me? How rude!"

The voice of a young boy spoke out as he floated down to the ground. Like Akira, he also had blonde hair, but his face was clearly different. While Akira was short with a face people would describe as cute and not very masculine, he would just be described as cute and charming. But there was more to it, there was an aura around him that screamed of ability. It was as if he was so capable, he could not hide it. Or maybe, he just was not ashamed of it.

But furthermore, despite clearly having the power of a Heroic Spirit, not a single person immediately recognized him. In other words, he was not Rider, or Berserker. An eight Heroic Spirit, who just appeared out of nowhere.

"Hmmm, five Servants without Masters...I thought I was a special case, but I suppose this just makes things really interesting...not to mention...".

When the boy spotted Akira, the Caster, he looked a bit shocked at first, but then after calmly assessing the situation looked towards Archer.

"I want to see who would win in a fight of Archer versus Archer. Robin Hood, right? Since I don't particularly mind these things, I will just tell you outright. My name is Gilgamesh, the child form anyways".

Hearing his name, a number of people got stricken with fear almost instantly. Caster, Lancer, Archer, and Sabre. That was because unlike Assassin, they all knew who Gilgamesh was...and just how unpredictable and powerful he could be. Akira was also a bit thankful though, because if Gilgamesh had spawned as Berserker they would all die for sure. He knew enough legends to know that Gilgamesh's adult form could spawn as a Berserker, so the fact that it was his Child Form made it even more advantageous for them.

Or at least, they wouldn't be at risk of all dying at once. Although he was probably incorrect, and that if even just half of them teamed up and fought them without interference they could win easily, that was the legend of Gilgamesh that inspired such fear into them.

"Tsk...it seems I got myself an unreasonable opponent...but, with none of us getting extra mana from Masters, my superior mana supply gives me a chance!"

Thinking along some logical lines, Robin fired several shots against Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh used swords to intercept them, but he maintained a smile on his face.

 _These new Servants seem a bit unstable...each in their own ways, but this seems to have made them a bit more powerful. Still, I should be able to beat this guy, but compared to the last Holy Grail War I got dragged into, this should be interesting!_

Gilgamesh continued to fight Archer, and so everyone else resumed their battles as well. Assassin continued to use a Gun and Dagger combo against Caster, which forced him to dodge. However, because this Assassin was also very proficient with guns he could constantly aim at him even if Caster took flight. He managed to evade many of the attacks, but one or two bullets grazed him and it hurt like hell.

Meanwhile, Sabre continued a ruthless assault on Lancer and would not listen to reason at all. It was like she was brainwashed, which given what Assassin had done so far was entirely possible. Sabre would constantly slash at her, but Lancer was so far able to hold Sabre off using her own Noble Phantasm, which was her lance, as each time it was struck a shockwave would be released. But most of the time, Sabre was able to endure it which was both insane and worrying. At this right, it was possible for Sabre to overwhelm her.

But Lancer did not give up.

Gilgamesh did not have a guaranteed victory.

Caster was not out of tricks yet.

This battle had only just begun.

(Lil Gil is here! The identity of the boy from Chapter 6 revealed! And of course, Sabre and Assassin came and crashed the party! So let me know what you think so far in the reviews, and I hope you like the matchups this time!)


	9. FateBroken V1 C9

Fate/Broken V1 C9: Back Alley Brawl

"Flamehell Execution!"

Huge amounts of black flames burst out of the ground and tried to encircle and incinerate Assassin, but Assassin managed to dodge and jump off the side of a building, rushing towards Caster with crazy ability. Caster was able to fly so he was dodging fairly decently, but Assassin possessed some sort of crazy agility and ability and after becoming a Heroic Spirit, could jump off walls like it was nothing. As such, although Caster could move freely in the sky, he was not under such a large advantage from that.

"Discharge of the Six Primals!"

Suddenly, projectiles of fire, ice, rock, lightning, light, and shadow all shot at Assassin, with rock being the least likely. For some reason, Akira lacked affinity with the Earth Attribute. He was not sure if it was something to do with his previous life, or if it was because in his present memories he had memories of being really bad at growing things, either growing nothing at all or letting it overflow and kill all the other plants. One of his new memories even had him using magic once and overgrowing it to such a degree their lives were in danger. It seemed he was really bad with Earth Magic.

As the projectiles of these six elements rained down upon Assassin, he just managed to push off some to dodge others, effectively managing to sidestep the entire attack.

"Not good enough!"

He took out two guns and fired them both at Caster, forcing Caster to focus on defense again. This time, he tried a quintouple reinforced thick barrier with resonance shielding, but the bullets bypassed them all the same. One he just barely dodged that almost nicked his arm, and the other tried to get his leg but he had less faith in his defenses after this first time and was already in mid dodge.

"This is insane! This guy's guns have to be Noble Phantasms, they can bypass all defenses! What is with this ridiculously high spec Assassin?!"

Guns that could pierce Defenses and an ability to conceal their presence. If the Assassin got a headshot on anyone, it would be an instant kill. Given how unreasonable this combination was, Caster could be said to be feeling the most pressure of all. Of course, Lancer might disagree. Her Lance constantly clashed against Sabre's attacks, and yet most of the time the magic properties of her lance seemed to not effect her at all.

"That Assassin is lying to you! Stop fighting us!"

"I don't trust that guy either, but I wont let you manipulate Caster either! You honestly think I will believe you just happen to share the same goals as Caster?! I won't let you manipulate him!"

"Damnit Sabre!"

Sabre swung her sword around and nearly cut off Lancer's head, but Lancer was able to backstep and dodge it, before pushing Sabre away and gaining some distance by jabbing Sabre with her lance. Lancer then backstepped even more, to gain even more distance, but Sabre just launched herself at Lancer once more. Lancer tried to block the strike with her Lance, but Sabre then pushed off the ground, jumped over the lance and swung at Lancer from above. Lancer could only use her shield to block, but the force form the blow was felt by her even if the main strike was blocked.

However, right through their battlefield, an arrow crossed. That arrow was one that was shot from Archer and deflected by Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh was already in full use of his Gates of Babylon, using multiple Noble Phantasms at once. He was not able to use the same number as recorded in legends, likely as his body was in child form and did not fully develop those magic circuits. But in exchange, Gilgamesh seemed more skilled with the ones he could use. It was less of a mass of weapons, but his skill was greater with the weapons he did have which arguably made him stronger then this adult form.

But Robin was not a Heroic Spirit for nothing, and had managed to put some pressure on Gilgamesh. In the first place, Gilgamesh had to be careful about how he deflected the arrows. Sometimes, Robin would fire an altered arrow that did not fly straight, and used this to fire arrows around the times when Gil would block. Gil was also aware that Robin's mana supply was likely higher then his, but he was using his own abilities efficiently to counteract this difference.

But still, he was not underestimating his opponent. He knew better then that. That was a mistake his older self made. Well, that didn't mean his personality changed much though.

"Come on now, Archer-niichan! Is this all you got?"

"Damn brat!"

In the same way that Gil was feeling pressure, so was Robin. His best attacks were getting blocked, and he had to constantly dodge the barrage of swords, lances, and other Noble Phantasms that were sent at him by Gil. They did not know it, but they were truly pushing each other to their limits. Archer fired more arrows, Gil would have to block all of them. Gil would fire weapons at Archer, but Archer would dodge them. More then that, Archer would use his Plunder to temporarily take a weapon used at him and sent it back at Gil, pressuring him more. Gil would use Gates of Babylon to reclaim it, but both were using mana to do this. In other words, they were exhausting each other constantly in a battle of Archer versus Archer. If one of them did not think of a new strategy soon, they would exhaust each other and this would just be a test of endurance.

And then, Gil did think of a fun idea.

"What are you smiling f...oh fuck!"

Archer wondered why Gil started smiling, but then he saw Gil push his body to and probably past its limits, both real and theoretical, as a huge amount of weapons were summoned all at once. In the first place, Robin had assumed this would be a tough fight, but now he saw the strength Gil had been holding back. Of course, he had been doing this because he was mindful of attracting attention from other combatants and avoid any of them thinking "It would be better to strike this guy from behind before he became too much of a problem". Especially with Assassin darting around, Gil had to be careful. But now, he wanted to get rid of one enemy so that pressure on the other two could be increased.

Gil had already decided to side with Caster and Lancer from the start. Not because of the Grail, not because of honor or fairness. He just thought it would be fun to stick with the guy all the action was happening around. In other words, he wanted to have fun. After all, he certainly did not want to become like his older self.

And then, Gil launched all of these weapons at once, keeping none to protect himself that he summoned and instead used every single one against Robin. This was the total onslaught of Gilgamesh. But just like Gilgamesh, Robin was also an Archer. He could see the trajectories of the projectiles, and saw an opening. Using Plunder on one single weapon, he created a small gap for him to slip through and...

"Gotcha".

...fell right into Gil's trap. A chain emerged out of Gil's sleeve and pierced through Robin. Robin was still able to dodge a lethal blow, but it severely injured him. Robin took two spheres out of his pocket at the same time and threw them on the ground while covering his mouth. A huge cloud of black smoke emerged, and got in Gil's way. Gil quickly waved the smoke away, but after he did, Robin was gone.

"It looks like he chose to withdraw today. Oh well, guess I can...ahk!"

Gil acted rather calmly, but then he felt something inside him go wrong.

"Don't tell me...poisoned smoke bombs...I see. This wont kill me, but I better focus on healing so that it does not bother me too much. Well, it looks like those two have a good shot, so I should not ruin their moments".

While that had been going on, Caster and Assassin's battle had taken to the ground. Rather, Caster couldn't handle being attacked at all sides in the air, and at least on the ground he did not have to worry about attacks from below. Two shields made of magic energy where attached to each arm, and were being used to block the attacks from Assassin's daggers. Caster was also using heavy physical reinforcement magic, because he realized now that ranged combat against Assassin was a horrible idea. With those guns, he had superior ranged ability so only close ranged combat, where he could be sure those guns would not be used and if they were he could predict it, dodge it, or attack the weapons themselves.

Which resulted in a Caster going into melee combat against an Assassin using various forms of magic in atypical ways. And furthermore...

"Teleport!"

Using Teleportation runes he was constantly placing, he would teleport behind Assassin for a strike, or teleport away from assassin for a second, launch a magic attack from one side, and then teleport back to his other side and strike from there. Although Assassin should hold more close range ability, Caster was using his strengths well to balance it. However, in the end, Assassin was able to make more attacks against Caster when they were in close range. Even if Caster was using tactics, and Assassin had better long range abilities, he also had close range abilities as well and his specs were much better for close range combat. Furthermore, his knives were coated with a special paralytic poison so Caster could not get cut once by them.

"Firebolt! Remote trigger!"

He was also using runes to remote trigger spells at a distance, and put pressure on Assassin constantly. Assassin was also monitoring the rest of the battle. He noticed that Lancer was slowly but surely losing to Sabre, but that Gil had repelled Archer. In other words, the moment Gil recovered he would either fight against Assassin, and take him out alongside Caster, or help Lancer and turn the tides against Sabre. Then both of them would come over and beat up Assassin.

In other words, Assassin would have to pull out all the stops. If he failed this next attack, he would have to run away and try again later.

Assassin was forced to not use his daggers in the next clash with Caster, and instead delivered a strong kick right to Caster's stomach, sending him flying into the air. He then took out both guns and shot them all into the air, all bullets poisoned and aimed to disable Caster. After all, they all needed Caster to find the damn Grail. Killing him would ruin everything, for everyone. And so, all of the bullets fired upon him...and went right through him. And then the image disappeared, as if an illusion, and the real Caster appeared right under his nose already swinging a lightning infused staff into his body.

The impact sent Assassin flying, but mid air he flipped himself around and manipulated his body to land in the shadows. He then darted away without saying a word, as Assassins should since they are not really meant to fight long, drawn out battles. He could do it this time because it was Caster he was facing, but with that attack he knew it would be impossible afterwards to capture Caster and fled.

At the same time, Lancer and Sabre were still in their dual. Sabre swung her sword around and managed to nick Lancer a bit, but Lancer was able to push her back. However, this left an opening and Sabre planned to take it...except then a staff full of lightning hit her in the back of the head.

"Sorry for interrupting your epic fight and all, but I think we should get out of here. It looks like the cops are coming, and I gotta get home".

"Right...sorry I couldn't beat her".

"You did pretty good against Sabre, for now let's retreat. Hey are you..."

"Wait for me!"

Before Akira could even finish asking, Gil was already helping carry Sabre. After everything that happened, Akira could not wait to reach his bed at home. After all, he had a feeling things would only get worse before they got better...

(Poor Lancer, bad luck having to fight Sabre...well, it was a Knight class against a Knight class. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed! Leave some reviews about what your favorite part was so far, and what you liked best about this battle!)


	10. FateBroken V1 C10

Fate/Broken V1 C10: The New Neighborhood

The walk to the neighborhood, which involved Lancer carrying an unconscious Sabre on her back with Gil behind her to keep watch on both Sabre and the surroundings behind them, and Caster in front with protection and detection spells on full that had the chance of even penetrating an Assassin's Presence Concealment due to the overkill amount of mana he poured into them, was one that went on with all awake members on high alert.

Not just were they on high alert for another enemy attack, but they were also being cautious of each other. Although they were trying to ignore them, Sabre's and Assassin's words had made some impact.

However, after they turned one block and entered a main street, once Caster looked around he seemed to drop his alarm and sigh with relief.

"Caster?"

"Hey, j...just hold on. This is the final part right? I know its close and it feels great here, but even I wouldn't just relax my guard like that".

"No, it is okay. Because now a surprise attack, and them tracking us, is impossible. This is part of my territory after all".

When they heard those words, the two looked with surprise.

"This street is your territory? Isn't that the opposite of hidden?"

"No, actually all the surrounding blocks are. We are a block into the territory already, so there is no way they can just come up and attack now. Furthermore, being in my own territory gives bonuses to me so if they did attack it would be much different then usual. And finally, my territory prevents tracking and similar actions on me and those that are against my interests and wishes".

Hearing the explanation, Gil was the next to relax himself.

"Damn, well played. That is a rather crafty territory creation".

"Huh, what do you mean?"

The only one who did not quite understand what he meant was Lancer, who was less familiar with Territory Creation and magic then Akira, who was a Caster, and Gil who had collected almost all Noble Phantasms at one point.

But before Akira could get to it, Gil jumped in front of Bray and explained it to her while walking backwards as Akira kept leading them forward.

"Essentially, this entire region, all of the streets in this area, it is impossible to track or locate us in any way using magic or technology. Furthermore, Akira knows whenever an intruder has entered his territory, so if they try following him normally he will learn it well before he makes it home. And when he learns it, because of the boosts he gets on his territory, he can defeat them easily. If its here, he might even be able to defeat Berserker...though, only if he gets the drop on Berserker and not the other way around".

"Well, because otherwise it would alert me to everyone all the time, it only does it for those with hostile intentions for me. Or intentions that go against my desires and wishes, at least to some extent. If they wander in on their own, it would go unnoticed, but if they spot me and they are not friendly then I will get alerted".

Bray just looked at the two of them with a shocked expression.

"So, in other words, so long as we are in this territory, it is a safe zone?"

"To some extent, yet. I don't think we should act too risky though, lets play it safe for now...ah, here it is".

Suddenly, they stopped in front of a building. It looked a bit older then the others, but had clearly been renovated to have all modern luxuries. It was the building with the large apartment co-op that Akira lived in, named the Fuyuki Building, which was named after the street it was on Fuyuki street. Gil stared at the name for a moment.

"Gil-kun, you okay?"

"A...yeah, sorry. It's just, Fuyuki is a name that is familiar to me. Sorry, coming!"

Akira's voice snapped Gil out of his daze, and he entered the building with them.

"That reminds me, I don't think I got your names yet. And I even introduced myself too".

"Sorry sorry. My name is Akira Romji, you can call me Akira. I am the Caster, but Akira is not my real name. Unfortunately, I don't remember that, and my past is blurry and fragmented".

"Caster...is it really okay to just trust him like this? He did help us, but..."

"Well, I admit I am a bit nervous, but my territory lets me sense those with hostile or enemy like intentions for me..."

"Yeah. Akira-kun is smart. He did not say anything about that and let us walk into it. Because of that, he knows now that he can trust us, at least more then those others".

Although, granted that could change afterwards, it meant that they were not actively tricking him or anything. No, it could easily be said that Gil could be trusted because he didn't like using underhanded methods that were complicated or anything, and also there was something about him that instinctively made Bray think he was more interested in Caster then he let on.

That was why Akira let them come to his place. However, along the way something else caught Gil's eye and he quickly and quietly took out a phone and made a phone call. The group had to wait for a bit, but eventually Gil came back.

"What was that about?"

"Sorry sorry, I needed to do something real quick. And check on something".

"Huh...actually, speaking of which, there is something I want to know. You have Servant Abilities, but you don't seem to have a Master. But you don't appear to be a Servant called to this place like us, and it seems clear you have been in this world for awhile. So what are you, and do you know what is going on?"

"Well, you already know who I am, but to answer what I am...I guess I was an accidental extra? I am the Eight Servant of a totally different Holy Grail War. If you include all the times someone made a wish that changed the timeline, there are an excessive amount of previous Holy Grail Wars, and the amount of wishes to change the fate of a certain family alone are...well, we don't need to get into that. But, if you ever hear someone say the name Shirou Emiya, or Illyasviel von Einzbern, let me know immediately".

"Huh? Why those two names?"

"They are, were, and should have been two previous contestants in Holy Grail Wars. However, because of various tragedies and family connections, one or both of them died, or maybe got erased from existence. Well, no one should even know the names, so that is why I brought them up. Because I exist outside the system also because of the Grail, I am one of the exceptions".

"An exception? Wait, so this does connect to what you are? And how does an Eight Servant even exist?"

"I am a full person, but technically I am also a half. You see, there are two versions of me. An Adult Half, and me the Child Half. It is a bit unclear, I think the legend changed once or twice thanks to a wish made by the Grail, but at some point in my life I drank a potion which gave me eternal youth like Akira here. However, there also exists my Adult Self who did not take it, so I think that decision may have been made by someone wishing from the Grail, likely myself, to separate my child self from my adult self. As a result, one became two. Me and him. And so, one time when he got summoned, I did as well. But, the potion I drank combined with the wish that separated me from him allowed me to permanently stay materialized in this world. As such, although like him I am of the Archer Class, I am not bound to the Grail and I can keep myself around without limit or a need for mana".

Upon hearing this as they started to head upstairs, Akira's eyes got excited and Bray also could not hide her happiness.

"So, it is true then? Its possible to sever a Servant from the Grail and keep them manifested?!"

"Normally it wouldn't, but in your case because you were summoned without Masters, it should be a lot easier to do. I mean, it is possible even when the Servant is bound, but its annoyingly difficult and usually impossible since both have some wish they want fulfilled by the Grail and it requires their consent and losing that ability among the entire procedure. But for you, it only requires your individual desire, and because it doesn't require untethering from a Master and his Mana, as you seem fully able to restore and survive on your own mana in this world, it should be easy. There is just one issue...we need the object that brought you here for the ritual. In other words, whatever the 'Grail' this time is, we need that".

As they finally made it to Akira's floor, they heard noises from Sabre starting to wake up. There were a few others there as well in the hallway, and Bray was looking for a place to deal with Sabre privately. But one group in general came into Akira's group.

"Aki-chan! There you are...oh wow, you managed to get really dirty after this morning! Well, good timing! Something went wrong with the pipes, so the rest of us were going to go to a bathhouse to wash off. Cross-san apparently got a lot of work today, and Okija has his shift right now, so we were just going to go...still, I don't want Aki-chan to be alone...well, he is so young, I am sure it will be fine if we take him to the girl's side right Alex-chan?"

Akira went red in the face at that humiliating thought, Leena seemed oblivious to just how bad of an idea that was, which left Alex of the three of them that was the only one to do anything.

Well, Bray was currently trying to deal with Sabre as well, so there was only one other that could as well.

In fact, he was currently using a key to open the apartment co-op next to theirs. Like theirs, there was one main living area room that was a combination of a kitchen, dining room, and living room, with doors in the back leading to a master bedroom and a bathroom, and also stairs that went up to rooms above those for additional bedrooms, another additional bathroom, and other closet and storage space. There were also a few large closets on the main floor as well.

But the fact was, he was not breaking in, but using a key as if he lived there. No, in fact, that key that apparently came from the manager who was now just walking into the stairway back down meant he did live there!

"Ah, so you really do live here with others too Akira-kun!"

Gil said that as if they were friends who met today. Well, they essentially were, but he made their relationship sound a lot less weird, and less like he led them there.

"My name is Gil Gamesh. Me and Akira just met recently actually, I am just moving to the city. It is really nice to meet you. If you don't mind, could I come with you Oneechan? I don't know where the bathhouse is yet, and I bet Akira-kun could help me show where everything is!"

The one that saved him from complete and total embarrassment was Gil, who after using a really bad fake name, introduced himself as Akira's friend.

"Oh, how wonderful! Aki-chan making a friend his own age!"

"Yeah..."

Although Leena Reeves seemed to accept it just fine, the one who seemed a bit suspicious was Alexandria Torretta, who seemed to notice Gil quite a bit.

"You know, I gotta say, its really interesting. Your name just so happens to become Gilgamesh if you put it together, the famous king of heroes".

 _Oh crap...I forgot, she knows really odd stuff like this...wait, it would be a bit risky, but maybe I can somehow get her help later on finding out my True Name..._

Suddenly, two others approached...and those were Bray who was the Lancer, and the one who was Sabre, only instead of armor she was wearing normal civilian clothes now and fully conscious. They introduced themselves as Bray Gamesh and Jean Gamesh, Gil's older sisters.

Akira was not sure what happened, but it appeared that Sabre was no longer their enemy, at least for now. And so the six of them all went to the local bathhouse in an unexpected twist of fate. The only mental note that Akira even managed to get in was that he noticed that Gil liked to do things at his own pace, and now he had three Heroic Spirits as his neighbors.

He at least took it as a good sign that at least this was sort of normal and that his life did not turn into constant fighting.


	11. FateBroken V1 C11

Fate/Broken V1 C11: Nothing Hidden

The nearby bathhouse, known as the Sakura Bathhouse, was close enough so that it was still within the territory created by Akira and thus was protected against those with hostile intent. Or at least, he would know if someone with those intentions were inside the territory, and people were unable to locate him using technology or magic. Therefore, it should be safe.

"...why do I feel as if there are many hostile presences suddenly back there?"

And yet, after coming in before the separated with the girls, Akira suddenly sensed a number of people with hostile intent. He was acting a bit timid at this unexpected change, but Gil just chuckled as they finished putting their clothes away, rinsing off, and then walked towards the baths with just their towels. Because of all the hostile feelings, Akira felt a bit less confident and more figitedy, but Gil grabbed him arm and pulled Akira with him towards the baths. Notably, unlike Akira who had his towel wrapped around his waist, Gil had his towel draped around his shoulder.

"it is just jealousy. You came here with a ton of gorgous looking oneesans, so they are all looking at you with jealousy. Don't let it affect you, you are a Heroic Spirit after all".

"But I don't even know if what I did derserved it or not...and how can you be so shameless?!"

"What do you mean? I am just confident in my body. You should be the same, after all even at this age you have a body to be proud of!"

With no maliciousness at all, Gil grabbed Akira's towel and pulled it away as they got close to the baths. Akira got really embarrassed as a result, but Gil would not give it back.

"I mean, we are literally five feet away so there is no point, right?"

"I..I suppose...lets just get in!"

Akira quickly went into the water while Gil just calmly followed him, leaving their towels at the side as they relaxed in the water. It was at a perfect, soothing temperature, and after all that happened it helped them relax. They floated to a distance so that others would not overhear them.

"Ahhhh, a good bath with friends is great after a fight. Really washes the sweat and fatigue away!"

"Yeah...I gotta say, this is really nice..."

Akira also felt like this was a great thing to do. He had only vague impression of his past, but he was sure this was a good thing. It only felt slightly familiar though, so he wondered if this never happened in his previous life, or if he was a loner or something. But this felt nice, very nice. So nice that if it did not give him that impression, Akira might have forgotten it completely.

"Gil...I just want to know though, since we are alone and all..."

"If you are going to propose, I don't go that way, though I don't discriminate against those that do".

"No! Not that! I am not like that either! Not that...I think there is anything wrong with it either but...ahhg, stop teasing me!"

"Sorry sorry, but when I saw your serious face I could not help it".

"Well this is serious...I just need to know...did we...know each other previously?"

Gil looked at him with a face that, for a moment, showed a seriousness and thoughtfulness that Akira had yet to see on Gil's face. Ever since the two had met, Gil had always been acting in a joking manner or behaving in a carefree manner. That made the current Gil a shock to Akira that caused him to temporary lower his guard.

After which, he lunged at Akira and wrapped his arms around him, bringing him into a hug. No one seemed to notice this, but that was because Akira had put up a barrier before he asked that question just to be safe so that no one would pay attention to them. And although that barrier was up, this situation gave him such a shock he forgot it was there.

"Gil...Gil! This is really awkward! Please let go!"

After a bit of pleading, Gil finally let him go.

"Sorry, I just...lost it a bit there. It is kind of a hard question to ask. If you are asking if your True Name comes from my Legend, then no it does not. You don't really appear there. But, I do know your True Name, and although its a bit odd, I have met you before outside of what people know of my legend".

"So you do know my True Name then?!"

"Yes, but...its not something that can be told so easily. I suspect the reason Assassin has held onto it so long was to use it as a weapon against you, given the nature of your True Name...but, I can confirm you were a good person. Actually, you helped me realize the confidence I have today".

Akira was surprised when he heard those words.

"Were a good person? And what do you mean? Is my True Name something mentally damaging".

"Yes, but not in the way you are thinking. However, if you were to remember everything all at once, it might break your brain...out of all the Heroic Spirits, you are one of the most unstable. Not in the way Berserker is, but...if you remembered everything all at once, it would potentially be dangerous".

"Is it really that painful?"

"Your story...well, its kind of grim at times. Let's just say that, although those memories helped shape the personality I knew, it also had a bit of sorrow and pain. Maybe a lot, even I don't know the full scope of your story. I will tell you your True Name is atypical. It is something everyone knows, but it is not something that people would think of. It is that sort of story".

At some point, maybe because of the seriousness, the two had stood up and were staring at each other with the water a little above knee height. The two looked into each other's eyes, Gil's eyes containing a certain seriousness, and Akira's eyes containing a certain determination.

"Heh...but it is still you after all, that gaze is still the same. How did you know that I knew anyways?"

"When you spoke about your own appearance, you mentioned that you knew I experienced something similar to yourself, regarding my eternal youth. I never mentioned that outloud to you, which meant you already knew. The only way you could know that was by knowing who I really was".

"Ah...I see, I did say that. Damn, I blundered there. Well, it was only a minor blunder, not many would have picked up on such a minor detail. Guess that shows you are still exceptional as ever. Although, to be honest, figuring out your True Name shouldn't be impossible for the others. Your fighting style, although not unique, is a tell as well. The way you fight deceptively and using tricks. If you were an Assassin, you would probably be the strongest, though Caster does fit you as well. All those years you had of immortality, you picked up a lot of various Magecraft even if you never use it in your Legends".

"Wait, I was not a Mage in my legend? And why was it plural?!"

"Ah, crap. I said too much. Reuniting with an old friend has really thrown me off...well, listen. Don't worry about your True Name. You actually considered a possibility where you lost all your memories, and you put in a failsafe for just in case. Though, because you were so sure it would never happen, and to make sure it would never happen by accident, you made the seal extremely...odd".

"Is my lack of affinity with Earth Magic related to this also?"

"I really shouldn't say...but if you actually count that one experience, which makes perfect sense, then yes. You absolutely are terrible at dealing with plants from what I remember also".

"I see...I thought so...ahhhg, but its really annoying not knowing who I am! Are you sure you cant tell me?"

"Listen okay, your True Name is dangerous. We need to get the Grail first, make sure it is safe. If we secure the Grail, then we can spend the free time it will take to sort out your True Name. I promise, nothing will be hidden".

==Jean D'Arc POV==

As the group of us settled into the bath, we found ourselves suddenly assaulted with questions by our new neighbors, Leena and Alexandria. They got on to talking about various things, and a few conversations I am sure Akira would deem dangerous, and maybe even Gil as well, came up. It seemed that Leena cared greatly, but she might care a bit too greatly as she had no concept of personal space or modesty, and a degraded concept of privacy. She didn't mean anything bad, but that probably made it more dangerous.

Eventually, after the group calmed down, I was finally able to get a good private conversation going with Bray...or rather, the famous female knight Bradamant featured in various literature, and continue what little she told me at the start.

"So, then...that Assassin has some ability to manipulate minds? Then why didn't he use it on Akira-kun or yourself?"

"As for Akira, its possible that his Magic Resistance was simply too high being a Caster. His would likely be the highest after all. And as for me...well, I don't know, but perhaps he cannot use it on anyone he sees as an enemy?"

"The latter might make sense, but the former is iffy. I also possess a high Magic Resistance, and yet he was able to affect me. Granted, a Caster's should be higher but...I don't think that is it..."

"Then maybe it has something to do with Akira-kun's mind? It seems that his memories are blurred or hidden, and it seems like the Grail did it, so maybe the Grail's effect on him did that? It seems like a lot of things are different this time. Although we are still superior, it feels like Assassin's abilities are superior to what they should. Even Gil-kun said so. And Assassin's mind seems unusually unstable. He gave off an excuse earlier, but I think there is more to it. I think it was broken by the Grail as well. Same with Archer, I think given his actions his mind was also broken by the Grail. Maybe...maybe everyone's mind broke a different way, and the way yours broke made you more susceptible to mind manipulation?"

"It could be possible...it is certain this time the Grail is different. If there even is a Grail...what if the Grail just dissolved into nothingness? Or what if...what if the thing everyone else wants Caster for no longer exists?"

Hearing those words, Bray's expression went into shock.

"Are you saying the Holy Grail no longer exists? Or...well, at least whatever imitated the Grail?"

"Well, there is something I know about the Holy Grail Wars. Normally, I should not know, and given what information it is it doesn't make sense that I do know it, but if we go with your mind break theory for myself then maybe it is a part of that. I remember at one point, during a past Great Holy Grail War, although I don't quite understand how someone got a Greater Holy Grail from what I can remember, well I was something called Ruler Class Servant that was summoned at that time. And I remember some of the rules of Holy Grail Wars from that. And I remember this one rule, where if a Servant is summoned for multiple Holy Grail Wars, they wont have any memories of the previous Grail Wars they were in. Of course, rules have been known to change for various Grail Wars, but I believe it was a universal rule, at least by my time then".

"Wait, you don't mean..."

"What if this was the result of a wish? What if someone wished for all the Servants from the last Holy Grail War to live again and be able to live normally? Although it seems odd, I don't think we should discount the idea. And as such, maybe the Grail fulfilled the wish using its method for summoning normally, but then had them manifest physically? After all, even though we still have our strength and abilities, from the time I remember...I feel as if we may be weaker, more vulnerable then normal".

"Well, when I fought against a ruthless biker gang earlier, I did not get injured in the slightest, but...they never really hit me, or rather they never had a chance to, so I never confirmed that".

"It might just be her overprotection, but I heard that this morning when he woke up, Akira bumped his head. Of course, he said it was nothing and did not bother him at all, but she was certain that she heard him say 'ow'. She was concerned he had some concussion though because she thought it did not hurt enough, but for a Heroic Spirit to make any gesture of pain...maybe it was just a reaction, but I think we can be more easily harmed".

"Well, that woman is overprotective and strange, so she may not make a good reference".

"I suppose...still though, I suppose it is nice that Akira got such a good position, waking up in a fully formed life. What about you?"

"Ah, so I am not the only one? I was really surprised to wake up to such a convenience".

"You have a place to live?! Why did you go with our backstory then?"

"...the apartment you have is nicer. Listen, we already said I was adopted into the family a long time ago, so lets just say legally it is Jean Darka but I consider myself Jean Gamesh. Anyways, on that note, you think Gil is answering Akira's questions honestly?"

"He seems like a direct boy...but also a mischievous one, so probably not. Anyways, uhhh...I suppose we can talk about the rest later, the other two are coming back, and I kinda feel like taking this opportunity to talk about normal things. Since we never know when we can have this moment again..."

"...normal things, yeah...like...how Heroic Spirits always seem to look gorgeous, handsome, cute, or such...and...well built..."

And from that, a somewhat more normal but dangerous conversation began to emerge.

(AN: Its amazing how much plot can develop from a visit to the bathhouse, huh?)


	12. FateBroken V1 C12

Fate/Broken V1 C12: The Heated Topic (Or, Gil is a Jerk)

"Now, can we get back to the bath? Or are we going to keep standing? Pretty sure despite your barrier, people are starting to notice since it can probably only block so much".

As Gil went back down and submerged everything up to his neck into the water, Akira who realized the situation also quickly went back in and submerged himself, his face getting a bit red.

"Seriously...I wonder, when your memories do return, which side will remain? Well, then again, private bathing is only a recent thing, like one, maybe two centuries. Before that, since rivers and what not where the only place to bathe, being naked in front of others was a far more common occurrence. Especially in hot summers..."

"We don't really need a history lesson about this!"

Seeing Akira embarrassed, Gil just laughed...one might suspect he had plans and ideas in the future. He was rather mischievous after all, though given the time period he was from, it was also true to him this was a trivial matter unlike a more serious one.

Looking just a tad bit serious again, Gil locked eyes with Akira.

"So, how long are you going to sit on it?"

"Sit on what?"

"The location of the Grail, or whatever caused all this anyways. You already know where it is, right?"

Akira frowned his face and eyebrows a bit when Gil brought it up. At first, Akira was going to deny it. But then, he saw the gaze Gil was giving him.

He knew he could no longer hide it. As the water calmed, although the whole embarrassing part from Gil was still fresh on his mind and showing on his face, he managed to take a deep breath and return to a calm state.

"How did you know?"

"Out of everyone, you showed absolutely no haste at all in wanting to find the Grail. You did a decent job faking it on occasion, but in truth you have been avoiding it this whole time right? After all, if you had a territory established here, of course you would know".

"You should not overestimate me. I honestly did not know where the Grail was until recently. Rather, the real reason you knew was because you are the one who triggered the reaction, right?"

Gil just shrugged with his shoulders. He looked a bit indifferent to the whole thing, but then again, the Grail meant nothing to him. He was disconnected from the Grail Wars, and therefore from the wishes it contained. To him, it was just an event he would watch, and on occasions, get involved in when it interested him. Or if his darker half was summoned.

This time, it was because an island appeared out of nowhere, and he felt the minor presence of a Grail there. So he came to investigate, but instead he found Akira, a number of others, fighting over what was still a minor presence to him.

"You mean all that talk about the territory? About what I said, and what I didn't say?"

"Wait...what are you..."

"It appears we may not have much time. I was already a bit worried, but now...your memories are likely already starting to leak back in. As I thought, you were more fragile then I suspected. The way you know about what the Fountain of Youth really is. Lets not forget the way you acted differently around me, at least subconsciously. And don't leave out mentioning your knowledge of the Grail is unusually high".

"Gil-kun, you..."

"Right, well. Aside from that, I also knew what you were doing. Although I only sensed two specifically, the third is at the museum right? The runes you left across town to triangulate the position of the Grail?"

"...you don't plan on giving me a real answer do you?"

"Sorry. Not until the Grail is safe and I can restore your memories safely. Also, what is at the center of this city?"

"A clocktower. Now tell me, how much do you know really? You know what is going on with the Grail right?"

Although Gil was not answering a lot of important things for Akira, and just jumping from one thing to another, he was jumping to very important topics.

As for Akira, he had located the general location of the Grail, or whatever was mimicking it, the moment they returned. One point at home, one at the museum, and one at the port. He had placed three magic locator runes in secret. He had placed it before Assassin showed up, so he was unaware if Assassin knew about them. Normally, a spellcaster would only need to use one, and just feed that one mana to get through the interference. But the magical vortex hidden above the city would block that no matter what. Akira could only ever get a general sense, like a vague direction.

His plan was to use something that technology used. Triangulation of signals. The runes would work in three spots across the city, far away from each other. Museum, his territory, and the Port. The one in his territory would be stronger because it was in his territory, which would help protect it from interference by the vortex. It still needed the other two points to triangulate, but the moment he returned into the territory he triggered it.

He was a bit surprised that Gil noticed, but that was it. For some reason, he felt like he could trust Gil.

Of course, when he mentioned the Clocktower he was even more surprised.

"How did you..."

"How much do you know about the Mage's Association?"

"Surprisingly, I came to with quite a bit of knowledge. Why do...wait, do you mean the Clocktower is significant in some way? Do you mean?"

"Yeah, that place...it was only created recently, but a place does not just spawn from nothing. I am sure other traces of previous users also exist. Likely, this entire place is based on memories, I think previous Grail users. Or those who interacted with it significantly. And that is why the Grail is under that Clocktower. Once we finish this bath, we should see about getting Lancer and Sabre on our team and storming the place. Somehow, I suspect that the center of all this will not be an easy fight".

"Wait, once we finish?"

"Well, yeah. I have not spent time hanging out with an old friend like this in a long time, especially this open. Seriously, how did society regress to the point of being so phobic? They seem to be extremely intolerant, not only to nudity but also violence. From what I saw so far, it seems like someone cant justifiably punch someone in the face without getting arrested by the police...which is stupid, because the guy who got punched was being way too close and feely with the other man's wife".

Akira was not quite sure what to say to that as Gil floated closer, before rising up and wrapping one of his arms around the back of Akira's neck, and pressed them together side to side.

"Gi..Gil-kun!"

"Drop the kun and just call me Gil, Aki".

"B...but..."

"What, we are friends, and its not like one of us is interested in each other right? We are just really close friends, about to face almost certain death, and spending this time being together as friends close enough to be okay like this, naked with each other".

"You...you jerk! You are teasing me again!"

"Hahaha!"

"Seriously!"

"Well, you were trembling a little unconsciously, so I had to stop it somehow anyways. Besides, friends should be fine with skinship between each other!"

"Could you not mix seriousness with joking?! At least in this situation?!"

"Relax. I am interested in Sabre, not you. Seriously, all that power and strength..."

"Are...are you joking or being serious?"

Gil just returned a smile to his question as he stood up. He looked away for a moment at the wall, but in that moment when Akira saw his back it somehow looked reliable...and familiar. Akira was not even sure what was going on anymore, but he was starting to get a headache. Although he was not aware of it himself, it was actually a sign that what Gil said was right. Whatever scrambled Akira's memory was already deteriorating. It had been this whole time. That was why his memories, at least portions of them, kept getting sharper as the day had gone on.

And now, with his coaxing, he remembered a time in his past...or he thought it was. It still felt distorted, but it was him and Gil talking again, in a river doing what they were just doing there.

"You know, you really think this is a good idea? I mean, the potential side effects..."

"Trust me Gilly. I have had a lot more experience then you. This will work, and its going to be epic!"

"...Are you sur..."

It cut off right there, but it felt like something familiar was going to be said. As his head began to throb, Gil noticed Akira getting out of the bath but instead of grabbing his towel, was on his knees and one hand with the other holding his head. He dropped down next to Akira, hoping his barrier got dispelled soon so someone would notice and get some first aid while Gil started to perform his examination right then and there.

"Shit...I knew it was dangerous! Hold on Aki! This fever...wait, isn't it building too high? Unless..."

But before Gil could finish or the barrier that stopped people from paying attention to them could fade, the ground began to shake. Not from a quake, but from very large footsteps.

=="Grail" POV==

All watching. All knowing. Connected to all and everything. All of fate, all was under the Domain of the Grail.

Normally, a mindless entity. But not this, not this "Grail". It could sense a danger looming. A bug, a glitch had occurred. Or was it the bug itself?

As the "Grail" began to think these things, having absorbed so much, one of the first things it manifested was a desire of self preservation. No, maybe it was always there. Maybe it was already a conscious entity? But it considered and wondered, like if it was a True Grail or a Fake Grail? Or maybe, something else entirely? WHat was this entity of itself, known only as "Grail".

It was not Holy. It was not Dark.

It was broken. Or was it that all the others were broken, and it was fixed?

It needed answers. It needed life. There were servants created in the city, but not normal servants. Better? Worse?

They all had plans for it. Plans that would deplete its power. It could not afford that. One was especially dangerous. But the others were unwilling to comply.

No, it found one that was out of control. That would comply. The threat was hidden from its enemies, but this was the Realm of the Grail. Nothing was hidden from it. And so, through magic and influence, Grail decided to attack. And as it did, it began to search for another. A champion to use. A Guardian for itself, for the Grail. And then, it would search for an army for that Guardian to lead. But first, it would attack both mind and body of the one who could threaten it...and his allies.

And so, it called forth the one that was hiding, Berserker. The Berserker known as Fafnir.

(AN: Berserker is finally revealed! Yep, that is right! It is Fafnir! For those who don't know, Fafnir is a Dragon. He used to be a Dwarf, and a prince, but then went Berserk after receiving cursed treasure and eventually turned into a Dragon. So yeah, Berserker Dragon!)


	13. FateBroken V1 C13

Fate/Broken V1 C13: Preemptive Strike from the Grail (and the Struggles of Friendship)

(AN: So I got too excited for this fight, decided to forgo sleep, and get this out. And with all this adrenaline, who knows what else I might be able to do before I sleep).

==Gil's POV==

"Damnit! Where are the others?! Gates of Babylon, Open!"

As the building had begun to shake and stir from an attack, the source he could only guess was Berserker unless Sabre went crazy again for some reason, Gil had hoisted a naked Akira onto his back. Akira himself was in a feverish state, but thanks to him he had already confirmed the location of the Grail.

Although Gil had previously lamented on how silly he thought society had developed, he himself was annoyed now. He certainly did not want to engage in a fight without any armor or clothes with his pride as a warrior, but it was not like he could just stop and put them on. He had to prioritize. And to make matters worse, despite there being people around he was forced to use Gates of Babylon.

Well, there was armor and clothing in there too, but he could not just transport it onto his and Akira's bodies, and he could not take the time to stop with the building breaking down.

"Di...Di..."

Akira was muttering something, but he could not even stand on his own. But with what must have been his last ounce of strength, Akira shouted something out.

"Divine Realm!"

It was not exactly a perfect Divine Realm. It apparently copied their surroundings perfectly instead of transitioning a new one, but although most people had been excluded it appeared a number remained behind. Akira didn't have enough strength remaining, but Gil knew it was not his fault. In the first place, Gil had already noticed that it progressed faster then it should have.

"Given nothing was set off, and somehow Berserker appeared from nowhere...although unlikely, it is most likely the Grail that is responsible for all this".

At that point, Gil was talking to himself. Based on the breathing and heartbeat he heard behind him, Akira was passed out again in his feverish state. Apparently, it had detected Akira locating it, and had struck back against Akira by triggering his mind. He didn't even have the time to use the unsealing method. If it was the one he met all those years ago, then he would be able to do something in this situation.

Unfortunately, Gil ran out of places to run and hide at this point as a large claw came crashing down. And the moment Gil saw it, he frowned.

"I see, so it was Fafnir...good thing I studied up on this".

Between his own original memories, and what he researched after coming to this world, he was able to recognize Fafnir with a single look. Of course, he neglected to mention that it was for a reason so childish as thinking it would be cool to fight dragons. This let him however, from his frivolous research into the sparring partner he hoped for, to learn all of their unique cahracteristics.

If it was any other time, Gil would be jumping for joy. Even if he was a warrior and therefore it hurt his pride to fight naked, if it was against a Dragon he would be totally okay with it. Exactly because it was a dragon, and the tale would be epic no matter what. No, he considered the possibility it would be even more epic. Doing it without protection of any kind, and winning.

But, he had Akira to protect. As such, he could not feel elated in his current situation.

"Aki-chan! Gil-kun! You are both here! A bunch of others disappeared, and it was really shocking!"

"Ah...Leena-neechan, you should look away!"

"But its fine right? This is an emergency, and they are still quite youn..."

"Is now really the time to bring that...wait, what..."

"Damnit! Look out!"

As the two ran over, though they were dressed for some reason, the Dragon tried to attack them with fire. Gil was forced to put Akira down on the ground, and used his weapons and shields to skillfully protect the two of them so they could run over to where Akira was.

"Gil?! Are you okay?!"

"Well, it would be nice to wear something, preferably fire resistant, but..."

Gil was now using his weapons and shields to block all attacks. There was no way he could get dressed under this situation, a single drop of his focus elsewhere and the Dragon Berserker would crash though and kill them all.

Leena seemed to be under the impression of "Of course, that makes sense", which left his only sympathy coming from Alex. However, it was then Alex that thought of something.

"Hey, that is some form of magic right?"

"Yeah...hey hold on, why are you not surprised?"

"Well...err, I don't know? A Dragon is already breaking through...but, I guess I feel like my will is not broken yet".

"Same. I am processing the situation calmly somehow. I feel invigorated even".

 _How the hell are they both fine...unless, wait. Sabre too, she was calm once she was in the territory. Could it be...the Territory is designed to boost allies as well? In that case, its boosting our willpower, intelligence...of course! He must have added that when he used Dimensional Realm! Oh, you clever bastard you...you really do come through in the end, old friend..._

Alex, who seemed to be quite capable and knowledgable, came up to him.

"So then, you really are Gilgamesh aren't you? I know a lot of things people consider obscure".

 _I think this woman was already suspicious of who I was when I first arrived...maybe she had yet to outgrow her belief in magic. Well, since its real, I suppose its justified._

"Yeah...and?"

"Well, I don't know how you feel about it, but wherever you summoned these chains and swords from, if you had armor or something, and you deposited it, I could..."

"...I see. Yes, that would be very helpful. Thank you".

Using this coordination, Gil was able to get dressed in something without deviating his focus from defense.

"By the way, you two are dressed because..."

"The four of us finished. Wait, those other two that were with you, by any chance are they some sort of mage or magic warrior too?"

"Okay, seriously?! How do you know these terms?!"

"This place...it was created right?"

"Yeah, by Aki...oh hell, don't tell me he looped in information sharing for allies telepathically too! Damnit, how much more of a genius can he be?!"

It appeared that, in order to combat any annoyances, Akira had programmed quite a bit into the spell he used last. To a point where it was just silly. Of course, normally this was an extremely bad idea to do, but it seemed that Akira had on purposefully kept these two around realizing Gil could not do this and take care of him. In truth, it was because it was an emergency situation, and because if they panicked from not being able to find him, it could result in a serious issue. By now though, it seemed that the Divine Realm had safely excluded everyone else. And because it had also removed the annoying issue of revelation that normally happened at this time, Gil was not as frustrated as he could have been.

Of course, while inside the Divine Realm, it would be impossible for the Grail to target any of them, so strategically it also served for that reason.

Although it was not much, and because he could not really move his hands, Gil was only dressed in pants and shoes. But, it was better then nothing, and given what the special abilities on them were...it was enough.

But not enough to stop the Dragon from finally breaking through his defense. But before it could launch an attack, as it pulled back, those two finally used the opening and attacked Berserker. Bray used her lance and knocked it backwards, while Jean went for the throat. Of course, it swatted them away with its oversized hands, but Jean actually managed to stab through one. They took serious injury from that, but Gil was able to launch an attack while it was distracted by them. It managed to block a good number, but it was also seriously injured.

"We cant draw out this fight. Well, it's a good thing it is us three".

A Sabre, a Lancer, and an Archer. All three of them were of the three Knight classes that made up the seven classes. In other words, they should hold some of the highest firepower. Even with their Caster taken out, they should have more then enough Firepower to fight Berserker. Of course, it was a Berserker being powered up and controlled by the Grail, but they had power on their side. The Gates of Babylon, Bray's Lance, and Jean's sword. And to make it more interesting.

"I call upon my full Heroic Power, my Noble Phantasm, Joan of Arc!"

As if Sabre got a huge powerup, she seemed to recover and get even stronger. Lancer also managed to get back up, but it seemed she had the bad luck to impact a van that was replicated using Divine Realm. Normally, damage from normal objects should not harm them, but since it was caused by an attack from a Heroic Spirit, it still did damage. It seemed like Lancer was exceptionally unlucky.

Joan charged forth, to strike down the Dragon at her full strength. It tried to block again, but this time she was able to cut into the skin better instead of being sent flying. With that force, Lancer came up from behind and hit Joan's sword with her lance to make it tear through the Dragon's limb even further. At this point, Gil sent a number of his Noble Phantasms to strike at Berserker, with some effort managed to hit him. However, the Dragon responded by using its fire breath to try and incinerate everyone. This forced Gil to pull back in order to protect Leena, Alexandria, and Akira. The two girls had taken some towels nearby, and were doing the only thing they could which was wipe the sweat off of Akira's body to help make him more comfortable.

Without him covering them, the Dragon resumed to start beating Sabre and Lancer to death using its tail, claws, and fangs. Unlike the Dragon Akira and Bray faced with Archer, this was much, much tougher. This was the true strength of a Dragon, which forced Lancer to wonder what that Dragon really was at the port. Well, she realized she could not focus on that right now and resumed only focusing on Berserker that was in front of her.

"And here is my weapon!"

She used her lance to try and push the Dragon back again, but it appeared to instinctively understand the lance's power and quickly struck her away without hitting the lance. Indeed, anything hit by the lance would get pushed away. It's original legend was that it was a magic lance that would unhorse whoever she hit with it, but that legend had taken route in her ability to use it to knock whatever she hit away with it. As such, it was her Noble Phantasm as well. And then Gil of course was using all of his Noble Phantasms to fight it.

And yet, Berserker had managed to take all of it so far. Although it was clear he was taking damage, it was also clear that he was also dealing damage to them. And further more...the Dimensional realm itself was starting to crack.

If they did not end this fight soon, the Dimensional Realm would vanish and people would get hurt in the real world.

"...Fool's Luck..."

A voice, soft but notable, cried out once more. Gil looked back, and saw that Akira was only barely conscious. He was still sweaty, and naked, and in bad shape. Yet somehow, he was able to push himself to awaken just once more. Defying all possible limits, the symbol of either a protagonist or an idiot.

Though given the Noble Phantasm he just used, it now made sense. But it always made sense, because before Akira was Akira, Gil knew just how foolish he was.

"Idiot! Just rest and sleep!" Gil shouted before looking back at the others. "Everyone, hit it now! Hit it with everything you can! I don't know how long his Noble Phantasm will hold out! Use everything!"

Gil summoned forth as many swords and weapons as he could. Joan pushed her own Noble Phantasm to it's limits. Bray infused as much of her own mana into her lance as she could, and also into her motorcycle. No, it was no normal motorcycle. It never was. It was a mutated Noble Phantasm of its own, its existence finally becoming realized. A new Noble Phantasm. The Supercharged Speeder was unfortunately the best name Bray could come up with on short notice.

Using all of these at once, all of these Noble Phantasms, they unleashed a powerful super attack combined from all these Noble Phantasms at once. Even if Berserker was being fortified and boosted from the Grail, even if it was a Dragon, with all of this and the power from Fool's Luck, it couldn't even defend. When it tried, it also slipped up. The breath it tried to get shorted out as it chocked on something. The claws that had withstood so much managed to move in just the wrong way to trigger intense pain from the injuries it received. And it left its throat wide open, at which the three heroes struck through it in their united assault.

Berserker, who had quickly showed up, was also quickly banished. But it could not be helped, because if they let the fight be drawn out, even if they still won, even if they preserved more energy and strength, innocents, and potentially Akira and the other two, would have been in danger.

"But now, we are out of time. We will have to move on the Grail now".

Gil said that as the three landed on the ground near Akira.


	14. FateBroken V1 C14

Fate/Broken V1 C14: Unlocking the Gates

"Wait. What about Akira? We can't leave him like this. Even if he managed to conceal everything inside Dimensional Realm, there is no guarantee the others didn't notice and wont come looking".

Sabre was against Gil in leaving Akira alone, who was still unconscious, with two people who were unable to use Magecraft.

"We have no choice. We cannot take him with us in this state!"

Lancer however did not want to let the Grail hurt Akira again, and wanted to take it out as quickly as possible. Gil had updated them on what had happened at the baths.

"I guess there is no choice. There is only one option".

Hearing all this, Gil felt there was only one option left. He wanted to save this for until after they got the Grail, and even then he was hesitant since he knew getting the Grail would not be the end of all this. But there was no choice in the matter now. Next to Akira, from out of his Gates of Babylon, he took out a folded set of clothes, a book, and a music box. He also kicked over some debreis and liberated Akira's belongings that got buried in the changing room, which included his staff and his phone. He put both on top of the clothing he left, and then opened the music box. It began to play a tune so enchanting, if the Territory had not boosted their stats Leena and Alex would have been entranced.

"What...what is this?"

"Let the song play while he sleeps. No matter what happens, do not stop the song. Keep him pinned if you have to, but keep him inside this Dimensional Realm. Likely, he created it also to keep himself hidden away while this happened. And read that book, it contains thousands of stories. Don't worry, its enchanted so you will get through them all. Once you are done, you must speak his True Name. Meanwhile, me, Lancer, and Sabre will go and fight the Grail".

Once he finished speaking, he started to walk away towards the exist with Lancer who was in agreement, and Sabre who had given in. However, it was Leena herself who had a question.

"What is his True Name then?!"

"Sorry, but if I say it now, he might wake up instantly. The music will help ease him into it. Honestly, I wanted to have him sleep with this next to him for several days to do this, but we are out of time and his condition will only worsen. But, I do have this message for him. Since he will have his old memories, tell him this once he wakes up. Better catch up quickly, slowpoke".

And then, without leaving any chance for more discussion, the three of them immediately began to dash at full speed towards the Clocktower, leaving the Dimensional Realm.

Leena then took hold of the storybook with Alex, and the magic activated causing them to remember various fairy tails of old. Not just King Arthur or Jack and the Beanstalk, to smaller and simpler ones like the Three Little Pigs, Jack and Jill, and such. It would take awhile for a full download, but it was much faster then reading the entire book. And by the time they were done, they would have all the pieces they would need for Akira's True Name.

Bradamant the Lancer, Jean D'Arc the Sabre, and Gil the (other) Archer. The three knight classes had made a temporary alliance to go for the Grail and stop this madness, though each one had other reasons as well.

They were using their stats as Heroic Spirits to their limits though, jumping and running from rooftop to rooftop as top speed.

"We are out of earshot now right? So what is it? What is Akira's True Name?"

Gil looked around, and then seeing as how it would not remain hidden and Assassin already knew it, there was no point as Akira was also going through the process of remembering now. And so, in a soft voice the others were just barely able to hear, he spoke the name to them.

And once they heard those words, after questioning their sanity, they went into shock as they headed towards the clocktower.

"No way!"

"Are...are you serious?! That is who Akira is?!"

"Yeah...now you understand everything right?"

"But that...for that to be true..."

"That is just...to think that was the case..."

Gil was not at all surprised by their reactions, and just accepted it as he had expected this to be the case. After all, it was pretty unbelievable. With that identity however, the way he was summoned, his Noble Phantasms, his attitude and fighting style, all of it made sense. Even his personality, while not quite the same, could be explained.

"So for now, lets just focus on dealing with the Grail. Once he is finally awake, he will probably scold us if we have not beaten this thing yet".

"Ha? That does not..."

"No no! We definently have to deal with the Grail before then! Just keep moving! The Clocktower is in sight!"

Up ahead, among a variety of buildings with an older but more elegant outer architecture, was a Clocktower. Not just any Clocktower though, it was the exact same as the Clock Tower that was the head of the Mages Association. A perfect duplicate on the outside. But oddly enough, not a single person seemed to be coming in or out of it, nor were there guards preventing access.

In fact, Gil, Jean, and Bray were able to land right in front of it, walk up to the front doors and open them. No one paid any attention, no alarms were raised, nothing changed or was out of place. And when they entered, only then were there clear differences. It was just a room that had some tables, desks, and chairs, but what was the most notable was the spiral staircase. There were two ways, up or down, from the floor they were on.

"It is down. I can feel it now, the moment we entered this tower. Something powerful is down there".

"Indeed. I can sense it as well. This power...it is definently the source of what called us".

"It feels...strange. I can feel overwhelming power from it, but...somehow it feels like it is actually weaker then it should. Does that make sense?"

Gil clenched his fists, as he became extremely irritated once Sabre spoke those words. He could feel a presence that was, at it's core, something he did not want to sense.

Something dark.

Something hated.

Something evil.

"We need to move, now. We do not have much time left. Even in this partial state, this is something that we cannot allow to exist".

No longer his casual self, or even the bit of consideration seen before, Gil had a totally new expression of tone. It was one of rage, and hatred. More then that, there was now despise and pure malice. And just a pinch of regret as well. Summoning forth chains from his Gates of Babylon, he jumped right down the center hole of the spiral staircase and directly fell towards the threat.

"Damnit! Wait up!"

"What the hell happened to Gil?!"

The two who noticed his odd behavior jumped down after him. It was a surprisingly large fall, at least two dozen stories before they landed in something different. Not the same design as the Clock Tower, now there were cables everywhere, tunnels that led all around. Access to all over the city, from this one room, and clearly someone or something was connected to it.

Gil noticed movement at the edge of his vision despite not sensing anything yet, and launched one of his swords there. But whatever was there skillfully evaded and hid in the darker tunnels. For now, it seemed to just be watching them.

"Is that?"

"I don't know. It does not quite make sense, but for some reason someone made it here other then us. But who could find this place other then us?"

"Could we have been followed?"

"From Akira's territory? Other then the Grail, there should not be any way to do so. We would have to have been tracked afterwards...my bet is that it is Assassin somehow".

The three were a bit unsure of how Assassin would have tracked them, but then Gil considered one possibility. He immediately went over to Sabre and started searching her whole body.

"He...hey, what are you doing?!"

"Assassin has already been seen doing crafty and atypical things, and so has Robin for that matter. I think it may be possible that he bugged you or something when you two first met. He would do something like that after all...here!"

Hidden near the collar on the back of her clothes, just barely visible under the armor, Gil managed to find a bug. Most likely, it was Assassin's attempt to track them back to Akira's place. That was why he never showed up, and why they never noticed anyone following them. However, Akira's territory blocked even technological tracking, although Akira himself did not set it up to do that but rather someone set it up for him.

"We need to hurry, we cant let Assassin reach the Grail before us!"

While he said that, Gil made a run for it with Sabre and Lancer beside him as the ran towards the source of the magic. The waves of magical energy began to get more chaotic, and with those waves creatures began to form from the walls, floors, and came from the tunnels and passageways that darted along the main hall as well. Even the darkness of this place seemed to creep in, to the point where normal humans would be unable to see anything in this tunnel. Iconic things such as Goblins, Kobolds, Giant Serpants and Spiders, all came to attack them and blocked their path. Although the trio was able to make quick work of them, they wanted to preserve as much strength as possible. They had not had the chance to rest properly after fighting with Berserker, so they were not at their top shape, only just managing to heal their wounds.

The situation they were in could be called dicey at best.

But after forcing their way through the army that continued to spawn, finally they reached a large room at the end of this main tunnel. Now it turned into something else entirely, a temple or an alter. Giant armored statues dotted the walls, and at the center was a set of stairs that led to the main alter. And on the main alter, there appeared to be a golden base for a chalice. Not a full Golden Chalice, but just the base of one. At the center, where the handle or stick would be, was clear signs that the rest was broken off. It was only this fragment that was here, and nothing else.

But from that fragment, a black aura was surging forth.

"Is that..."

"Yeah, its part of a Holy Grail I think. So that is what is going on...the Grail doing is one that broke. But, Grails have broken before so...why is this time different?"

"We don't have time to think about it. Let's just take it. We all should have a high enough Magic Resistance to handle it since we are expecting it, it cant catch us off guard like it did Akira".

The three of them began to walk forward, but then a huge vortex of darkness burst open in the center of the room, right in front of them. Furthermore, a figure could be seen fading into existence inside the fog. The other two were shocked by this event, but Gil was more shocked and annoyed at a different detail.

"The Grail Fragment is summoning a Heroic Spirit to act as a Guardian...I suppose, a Guardian Class Servant...but of all the people...to pervert the purpose of this person like this, the Grail Fragment is truly evil..."

As the vortex died down, a man appeared in front of them. No, based on his age and appearance, one might still call him a boy. He was of high school age, with auburn hair and Golden Brown colored eyes. His hands were empty, but that only made Gil even more cautious.

"Hey everyone. I am sorry, but can you please stop this? As a Hero of Justice, I cannot allow you to put everyone else in danger".

As the Heroic Spirit that was summoned before them was Shirou Emiya.


	15. FateBroken V1 C15

Fate/Broken V1 C15: Awakening and the True Name

The three Heroic Spirits stared down the one single Servant that stood in their way. However, the three of them could instinctively feel just how powerful that Servant was, and Gil was familiar with the legend of Shirou Emiya.

"This guy...didn't you mention his name before?"

"Yeah. This guy is extremely dangerous. Probably even tougher then Berserker".

"Just who is he?"

"A previous Holy Grail War contender, and someone who had a legend built on him in the modern age. Given how difficult that is, do you understand now just how much danger we are in? Furthermore, he has now become a Heroic Spirit, a Servant directly summoned by the Grail, and likely has knowledge about all of our True Names and Noble Phantasms".

"Okay...so, in other words, all the power of Berserker but with skill and mobility as well. Fuck".

Shirou just looked at them as they spoke, before frowning and shaking his head.

"I guess you guys wont see reason huh? Very well, I guess I have no choice...Trace!"

Suddenly, a sword appeared in each of his hands, one being Excalibur and the other being a sword none of them recognized. Not even Gil. But then to make matters worse...

"Activate Noble Phantasm, Unlimited Blade Works!"

"Activate Noble Phantasm! Gates of Babylon!"

When Gil realized what Shirou was going to do, he activated his own Noble Phantasm. He got the weapons he could and used others to hold Shirou off, but Shirou dodged his block and moved behind Gil in an instant, slamming his blades into him. Gil was able to use mana to reinforce himself, but the blow still hurt and he was sent flying into the wall.

Sabre and Lancer attacked next, using a combination attack. Thanks to fighting each other earlier, and then fighting with each other against Berserker, they already had a good idea of how to fight with each other and engaged good teamwork. Although Shirou dodged Lancer's attack, he was hit with Sabre's in his left arm. Yet this did not seem to bother him much, and he even managed to repulse the blade by forcing another blade out of his body. Following that, several blades shot out of his body to skewer the two of them.

"Activate Noble Phantasm! Joan of Arc!"

Utilizing her Noble Phantasm again, Sabre put as much pressure as she could against Shirou, but Shirou not only sidestepped her attacks but moved to her side, grabbing her arm and flipping her on the ground. He also used that momentum to send himself flying to the side, which let him avoid several attacks sent by Gil. Lancer tried to move in to where he dodged, taking it as an opening, but suddenly several blades shot out of the ground in front of her. She was just barely able to dodge the attack, but then Shirou had taken advantage of her opening and thrusted a sword right into her. Her armor did not break, but the force of the blow sent her flying backwards.

"Activate Noble Phantasm! Supercharged Speeder!"

Lancer was able to activate her Noble Phantasm however and appeared on a motorcycle, which allowed her to zoom forward and counter attack. For this instance, she managed to catch Shirou off guard and hit him with her lance. He was sent flying back into the wall, which made a huge crater like indent. But he just pushed off and stood before them like nothing had happened.

But now, Gil actually had the time to look through his Gates of Babylon and took out a katana. This Katana was of the highest possible quality, and it was clear to everyone it was not some normal Katana.

"Just what the hell are you playing at!"

Yet before an attack could be made, an irritated Sabre called out to him.

"What do you mean? I have no idea what you are talking about".

"But...but...you are the one! You are the one who told me about Assassin, and you told me the Grail could not be trusted, and a lot of other things you told me I should confirm with my own two eyes!"

"Wait?! You met Shirou before?"

Gil was shocked. Shirou had only just been summoned, yet Sabre claimed she met him before.

"Ah! Now that I think about it, I think he is the waiter that served me, Robin, and Akira as well!"

And then Bray also seemed to remember him. However, this did not make Gil happy to hear these things. Rather, it made it all the more confusing. From what it sounded, it seemed that Shirou, or someone who looked like Shirou, had been moving around this whole time doing things in the shadows. It was confusing enough as it was, but now Gil had no idea what was going on. Were there two of Shirou, or was the Grail messing with them all along?

But Gil knew he could not get those answers right now, and letting this matter distract them would only ensure their loss.

"Everyone! Forget all that, right now he is an enemy and we need to focus!"

"Right!"

"Rodger!"

Gil, Sabre, and Lancer all teamed up again and launched a combined attack from all three of them, but Shirou was able to project more then enough blades to block all the attacks and then repel them, before launching a counter attack on all three at once. They just managed to block it, but the force behind it sent them sliding backwards.

"Is this Noble Phantasm, Unlimited Blade Works, really that strong?"

"Right now, I believe it has the power of my Adult Half's Gates of Babylon, with the skill of my ability to use it. And then, with the boosts the Grail must be giving him, it is even more superior".

"He seems to know all of our abilities and can counter them. I only caught him off guard with my motorcycle..."

"Wait...hold on, that is it! I might be wrong on this, but I think you all may already be disconnected from the Grail!"

"Wait, what...and how is that relevant?!"

"The Grail knows everything we had at the time we were all summoned I bet, but anything new seems to throw it off. That was why you were able to catch Shirou off guard with the motorcycle! In that case...we just have to use anything we gained since then to change the tides".

"Ehhhh...you sound pretty smart, Gil-kun. Or should I still call you Ojichan?"

"Heh...no matter, you will all be back in that void soon enough".

"Careful Grail, you are starting to break Shirou's character there. I want him to be the same after this so I can laugh at him for doing something so stupid".

Gil did not waste the chance to make a jab at the Grail and Shirou, as the two sides charged each other with these new ideas in mind.

==Caster's POV==

"Where...where is this..."

I called out, waking up in some strange place. I was still naked, but now I was standing in a forest filled with fog. I could not even see well past my own shoulders, so if I couldn't feel them I could not be sure my feet were still there. There was some sort of music playing in the background, and it was familiar.

As I took a few steps forward, I felt the dirt under my feet and the air move past my body. My senses felt sharper now then before, as if clarity was starting to come into my head and let me regain myself. At the same time, the fog started to clear and I noticed I was now wearing clothing. Not what I wore previously, but something different now. Instead of first, it was some form of cloth. And now, I was standing in a clearing in this forest. Around me were a variety of objects. A colorful patterned box with stars and what not, various toys such as jacks and yo yos, but also there was a desk that had candy of all types on it.

Everything from gingerbread, to sweets, to cracker jacks. And then, there were other objects around that came into view as the music played and the fog receeded. My brain felt like it was burning as it saw them, but surely my memories also began to awaken from this.

And then, it came into view. The symbol of why I could not use Earth Magic, one of the most popular symbols of my identity. I could feel the name on the tip of my tongue, my True Name, but oddly enough something still blocked it.

"You did not think it would be that easy did you?"

A voice called out behind me. I turned around, and I saw myself standing there. He was wearing the outfit of a Wizard.

"You know, you have quite the ego picturing yourself here".

"Wh...what?! I do not!"

"Do too".

"Do not!"

"Do too".

"No no no! I said I do not!"

"Yeah yeah yeah, whatever" the other me said as he jumped down. Suddenly, the scenery changed to that of a frozen wasteland. "Let's just hurry this up and get you to remember. Do you know where we are right now?"

"Uhh...no..."

"This is where you, or one of you, would have died if you had not stolen what you did. Unmarked graves for yourself and the family that raised you".

Suddenly, he walked around and the scenery changed again. I felt the ground disappear from under my feet, and I began to fall downwards only for the other me to catch me. Now, he was standing on a cloud and we were in the open sky. However, atop the clouds I could see a large palace.

"This palace was where you made a fortune, and found trouble. A Fool's Luck. But this is not your only story..."

He swung me around and threw me down towards the ground now. I was really starting to hate this version of myself, but instead of falling endlessly I fell into a well. I was now all wet, and stuck at the bottom of a well. He just looked down at me from the top.

"A place where one of your legends began, turned into a fable. Your sister was mentioned here. But of course, the most popular legend of yours, one of them anyways, has to be..."

The scenery changed again, as the walls of the well collapsed around me. Once again, we were standing in the misty forest. Everything was the same as before, including the symbol of why I could not use Earth Magic and the source of the legend people knew me by the best. With this, all of my memories started to come flooding back.

And I took hold of the Beanstalk that changed everything.

"I remember my True Name now. I remember everything, including the parts that everyone forgot".

"Then say it. Scream it. Awaken yourself, with your True Name!"

"My name...my True Name is the very concept. Something scattered across so many legends, connecting the odd fragments together! It exists in so many stories, both as the focus and just a background character. Throughout time and space, thoughout the heavens themselves, my True Name is the very ideal of a protagonist! I am Jack the Trickster!"

And so, Akira awoke from his slumber.

(Info: So this will take a bit of explaining. What Akira's True Name is Jack. You see, Jack is a famous trickster who used Wit to outsmart and defeat many characters. He is depicted as a young boy. He is best known for Jack and the Beanstalk, but he skips and hops through many stories. And because the very concept of Jack is used for so many protagonists, and the very idea of a protagonist, I used this to make his legend end up connecting with many other legends, including those with no real link (EX: The Fountain of Youth legend which is not bound to anyone specific) and made that was what ends up being summoned with him. As such, his Noble Phantasm of Fool's Luck is from what he is more known for, but his link to many other stories may also influence his other Noble Phantasms. The fact he can use various types of magic is from how long he lived and how many stories and experiences he had in the various tales, but his lack of an ability with Earth Magic is because he was completely hopeless in growing anything, and even couldn't grow Magic Beans without them going out of his control. As for why Akira is a Caster, that is because a Trickster can also be called a Magician, and a Magician would be a Caster, so that also fit well together)


	16. FateBroken V1 C16

Fate/Broken V1 C16: Battle of Legends

AN: An Addendum to last chapter's explanation about Jack. It seemed that with all my explaining, I accidentally skipped over some reinforcing points. The reason Akira/Caster has been so well rounded with a whole bunch of different skills, and why he can use multiple elements, is also a play on words with the term Jack of all Trades (Something that was referenced as Akira being earlier, just like how his deceptive and trickster fighting style was also a reference to him being Jack the Trickster and was mentioned earlier). So while I do admit maybe it might not be the easiest of things to figure out, it was not impossible either to figure out Akira's True Name was Jack the Trickster from tales like Jack and the Beanstalk. Anyways, that was also why he was a Caster aside from the experience and the pun with Trickster - Magician - Caster. It was to truly make him a Jack of all Trades, with his weakness in Earth Magic referring to his inability to handle crops properly in terms of the Beanstalk. Well, Jack is also sometimes referred to as lazy, and magic is often something that others consider to be a "lazy" or "shortcut" way of doing things.

AN2: Also, why is it Chapter 14 has only one visitor according to the records, yet 15 already had seven visitors (At the time I wrote this). Please do not skip chapters! Each chapter could and almost certainly does contain details I will refer back to!

==Gil's POV==

A huge barrage of bullets against a flurrying defensive field of blades. As Sabre and Lancer rested up and healed the cuts on their bodies, at the moment it was Gil who carried out an all out assault of weapons against Shirou and his swords. Except, he was not using swords or chains like he was known for.

"Now!"

Gil, who jumped above him, brought out another Gate of Babylon. Shirou attempted to intercept it with a sword, but what came out instead was a shell that was fired from a tank cannon. In addition, other gates were firing bullets and modern projectile weapons.

Shirou avoided a direct hit, but the shockwave from the impact knocked him against a wall.

"You really think that this will change from our previous fight Gil-kun? That was your adult version as well, the more powerful you. In your current state, you cannot defeat me".

"Heh. He might have had more overall power, but my skill is greater. Even now, you must realize that. I am stronger then last time".

Before, when they had been attacking him three on one, Shirou was defeating them one sided with them only scoring the hit with Lancer using her motorcycle. But now, Gil was managing to fight off Shirou on his own after changing his tactics. Gil had been in this world for a long time now, and he had continued his collecting after he stayed manifested. He even went so far as to acquire American tanks, though if the Government learned what he did they would be rather upset. But it was this change, this addition after manifesting that let him put pressure on Shirou.

The Shirou they were facing obviously could not be the True Shirou, as that Shirou would never be so oblivious and ignorant as to stop them like this. However, it was the Real Shirou, because Gil could feel his techniques and attacks becoming less and less effective against him. Shirou was learning, and adapting to how he fought. After just one fight, and in that middle of it for that matter, he was working out how to overcome and defeat Gil. Gil was not so conceited as to ignore how could end, that he could lose, so he did have an advantage that his older self didn't.

Well, in the first place, he didn't actually have much memories from his older self, and the ones he did were ones he stole to learn how to beat his older self and anyone that his older self pissed off.

In the first place, this was already difficult because Shirou's Unlimited Blade Works had evolved after he became a Heroic Spirit and it became a Noble Phantasm for him as a Heroic Spirit. He was not sure how many times Shirou had been summoned, in the various timelines. But he knew that this Shirou had fought his older self, and was clearly in possession of at least some of Shirou's original ability.

But, Gil was sure it was not perfect. That was because Shirou who was fighting could not be the True Shirou. Likely, the Grail either had to summon an incomplete version of him to make him obey, or had him under some sort of magical control. The latter meant that he himself was unwilling, and that tension was lowering the abilities that Shirou was able to use in this instance. But, the power the Grail was giving him, and the ever evolving Unlimited Blade Works were two things that more then compensated for that. He was sure that the lack of chant or changing into another world were just some of the mutations.

The fact that Gil was able to continue to fight against that proved just how much he deserved the title King of Heroes. To fight against the servant summoned by the Grail itself, even if it was only the fragment of one, was evidence that he was capable of overwhelming power and ability.

Shirou summoned forth what had to be three or four dozen swords and sent them all at Gil, but Gil was able to use Gates of Babylon to repel all the swords that came at him. However, he knew he could not let Shirou push him into the defensive because then Shirou would undoubtedly strike the winning blow and Gil would lose.

But before Gil could launch his next assault, Shirou launched forward to strike him.

"Duck!"

Hearing that word, instead of trying to block Gil ducked and a lance and a sword came flying above his head at Shirou.

This allowed them both to score a direct hit on Shirou, knocking him backward thanks to Lancer's lance and Sabre inflicted a serious wound on his chest using her sword. But what was more notable was that this force was added by the fact they both rode Lancer's motorcycle to have enough speed for them to attack Shirou before he could guard.

But yet, the Shirou they hit was smiling as if he won. And surely enough, from the ground two dozen swords emerged to stab them both. Gil who saw that smile already had his chains out and used them to wrap around the two and pull them back. But he was unable to avoid them sustaining wounds, and several swords had seriously injured them.

"Great, just when we finish healing...sorry Gil-kun, we were not much help there".

"No...you were. All those swords, I would have been unable to dodge them. Based on the way Shirou was moving, the spot you were in was the place I was going to move to in order to strike at him from behind. That would have killed me for sure. And that damn Shirou...the attacks we have used would have killed even the greatest of heroes, but he appears to only have light wounds".

Indeed, the three of them were in a worse state of appearance then Shirou. Although Shirou was getting boosted by the Grail, and they had no such connection to the Grail anymore, so it could be theorized that Shirou was in a worse state then he appeared. But even if that was true, no doubt he was overwhelming them.

Gil however just chuckled with a smile.

"He is going to kill us for sure".

"Hey, don't give up yet!"

"Yeah! Akira is counting on us!"

"Right...well, anyways. Lets just focus on doing as much damage as we can then and it should work itself out".

Gil looked at the watch on his wrist, and then decided to push his Magic Circuits to the absolute limit again. He summoned forth what had to be an endless amount of blades. Shirou, who saw this, summoned forth his own large amount of blades. Lancer and Sabre were injured, but they raised their weapons too in order to deal damage. In their eyes, this was an all or nothing fight. Nothing held back, everything to be used. And so they too brought forth all the mana they could to reinforce themselves and their Noble Phantasms.

But the one who made the first move was Shirou, who had blades shoot out from under their feet and go to strike them. The three managed to use their speed to dodge, but Shirou already had two blades Traced into his hands and he went to strike at the member who was in the best condition, Gil. Gil was also their powerhouse, so it could be said that if he was taken out they would lose this fight.

Which is why instead of blocking, Lancer threw herself into the attack in order to strike a blow against Shirou using her lance. But Shirou used blades to alter his own trajectory and avoid her lance while striking her. Throwing her aside in a critical state, it was Sabre who came from behind. Sabre, just like all other Sabres, typically did straightforward attacks and not attacks from behind, so this atypical tactic for a Sabre caught Shirou off guard and allowed her to strike him. But because they were putting so much into offense while knowingly abandoning defense, Shirou was able to strike her many times with swords as well.

This caused both Sabre and Lancer, who were badly beaten, to fall to the ground. Unless Gil somehow bought them the time to recover, it was doubtful they would be of any more help. Of course, some would question why they did not just keep the status quo from before when Gil was one sidedly attacking Shirou, but the issue was that Gil would run out of mana before Shirou since Shirou was getting a limitless supply of mana from the Grail. That would have also led to their defeat.

More blades came to attack Gil, but Gil was able to intercept some of them with his own. However, when one blade broke off, a blade that was hidden inside that one came and managed to hit him. After that, others did the same, and Gil began to take damage. Eventually, an attack came that slammed into Gil with enough force to smash him into the ground.

"You know Gil-kun, I think you are starting to turn into your older self. Seeking the Grail like this, believing you can surpass it's power".

"You should regret ever coming to this island, mongrel".

"Oi oi, Grail, you are breaking Shirou's character again. Anyways, that is my phrase. I am the one who is supposed to call you mongrel".

Gil responded to both voices of Shirou, as he just sat up. But it was not a look of defeat on his face, but rather one of joy and happiness.

"You are happy for losing Gil-kun?"

"You brat! You enjoy this?!"

"Sorry, but the fact that your voice keeps breaking like that proves that the Grail cannot fully corrupt Shirou's ideals and images. Well, I don't think you were ever a real Grail to begin with, just a fragment of a ghost. But yeah, I am happy. I have to admit, I was worried and pissed before, but after so much time has passed I just got really into the fight. Ahhhh, this world is great. At first, I was worried that this modern society was so uppity and overly cautious it would be boring, but I am still able to have fun! Hurray!"

Gil, who looked just like a kid who was happy and full of smiles, just sat there totally defenseless as Shirou approached.

"You...this is bait. The moment I swing at you, something bad will happen like it always does in this situation. What are you planning?"

"You will die now, you understand that right?!"

"Ehhh...am I planning something?"

"Gil-kun, its so obvious".

"You brat! Tell us and we will make it painless for you!"

"Really? Is that what it seems? That I am obviously planning something?"

"Right then. No more games".

"Now you die!"

And so, Shirou raised his sword and swung it down at Gil...only for it to get frozen in a wall of ice that stopped it one centimeter before Gil's neck.

And a voice they all recognized spoke out.

"Honestly Gil, don't you think you made that a bit too cliché and theatric?"

It was Akira, holding his staff and wearing his new clothes, that had saved the day this time. But instead of the expression of someone timid or uncertain, his look this time was that of determination which gave him an air of maturity. It was a gaze that even Shirou reacted to with wide eyes. Even the dark energies of the Grail fluxuated upon seeing it, and the Grail was supposed to be an emotionless entity.

Putting one foot in front of the other, Akira stepped into the temple room.

"Akira Romji, Caster. True Name, Jack the Trickster. Ready to kick some ass".

(AN: Oh hell yes! The epic climactic fight of Volume 1 approaches! Akira has a fire inside him now!)


	17. FateBroken V1 C17

Fate/Broken V1 C17: Jack vs. Shirou

==Jack POV==

Note: This song feels like it works well for this chapter, provided you start it at the right point and time it with your reading: watch?v=G-UN6uRMBRw

Akira walked forward, his expression full of confidence and zeal now. It was as if a cloud was lifted, and the person he used to be was just a shell that hid his true self. Well, that was the simple version. Akira had risen up from the cloud that blinded him, and now Jack was there to play.

"Gil, you must be slacking with your training. You couldn't win three versus one".

"Oh shut up, you are way more lazy then me. I can take you on now".

"Well, we can leave that up for later. After all, I am extremely pissed off that this guy beat up my friends so badly".

"You really think you can fight me? They had three people, and they lost".

"No, they did not lose...I understand Gil's plan fully. You are right, one versus one, I could not defeat you. But even if you have unlimited mana and unlimited blades, you are not at one hundred percent are you?"

It was at that moment that Shirou finally understood what Gil had meant when he said to do as much damage as possible. Because Shirou was confident he could defeat all of them, partially because in his mind he felt like he had no choice, that he could only be a Hero of Justice if he beat them, he had not considered paying too much attention to defense. Of course, if he could avoid a blow he would, but he had played less cautiously because he believed, and knew, that he would win.

In his current condition, where he had not even started to heal yet, this was not a true 1v1 fight. This had been a 4v1 fight where the last member had essentially been held back so that the one would expend a large amount of energy without thinking about him and end up being in a weakened state.

That had been Gil's plan all along. He knew Akira/Jack would come, and on purposefully focused on holding out long enough to give Akira time to show up after learning he was Jack, and dealing as much damage to make his friend's job easier. ANd of course, Akira was angry at seeing them in such a state, which for him might actually make him stronger. Because now he was Jack, and he was pissed.

(You should probably start the song at the music start here)

Akira clenched his fist, and Jack took the stage. In truth, because of the memory glitch their personalities were still divided to some extent. They were seamlessly merging, but it would be a bit glitched for awhile. But right now, it was Jack that was in full control.

"Activate Noble Phantasm: Realm of the Storyteller!"

Suddenly, the setting changed around them as Akira's mana flared up. A beanstalk grew out from the center, Gil, Bray, and Jean were hidden by a huge mass of what appeared to be clouds, and it left only Jack, Shirou, and the Chalice in view.

And then, the two lunched at each other. Jack swung his staff around to meet the blades that would spawn, but at that time Jack's eyes began to glow blue. As Jack the Trickster was the embodiment of many different Jacks, this included characters such as Jack Frost. At this moment, the floors, ceilings, and walls as well as every bit of stone in this room froze.

Shirou clashed his blades against Jack's staff, but when he tried to make blades come out of the ground they would not budge. To be exact, they were frozen in place and could not bypass the ice that Jack had covered this room with.

"Well done...but I am not beat yet".

Shirou was still a Guardian Class Servant, and Jack was a Caster Class. A Guardian Class, which was an atypical class that could not normally be summoned, was actually what many would consider a cheat. It had the abilities of a Caster, Sabre, Assassin, Lancer, and all the other classes. Its stats were all at the top, and with the direct connection to the Grail it had unlimited mana. Combined with the Noble Phantasm Shirou possessed which let him summon unlimited blades, it was extremely overpowered.

But this Guardian was only summoned by a fragment of the Grail. It was not at the full power a normal Guardian Class would be at, and the Chalice had focused most of the cheats that it had on the unlimited mana to work with Unlimited Blade Works. This was what made Shirou so powerful despite missing most of the perks of the Guardian Class, but even a fully powered Guardian Class was able to be defeated. No matter how powerful, the Chalice could not create a Servant that was invincible.

As Jack summoned lightning into his staff to zap Shirou at close range, Shirou jumped back and then focused a boost into his speed, darting behind Jack and swinging at him from behind. Yet what he swung through was only an illusion, as his blades cut right through. Furthermore, a rune was hidden inside the illusion which still ended up zapping Shirou with electricity.

In a direct, full force one versus one fight, Jack would lose every time to Shirou. Jack could not hope to fight Shirou honestly.

But Jack was a Trickster. And the thing about Tricksters was that they could defeat the strongest of foes. After all, if the strong are never able to hit the weak at the start, but the weak are able to keep landing attacks on the strong, eventually the strong would fall and the weak would win.

Appearing above Shirou as he floated in the air, Jack unleashed several spikes of ice. Shirou was able to block most with his Unlimited Blade Works, but one ice spike hid behind another and pierced through Shirou's left leg.

Shirou was not even at forty percent of his strength when this fight started, having used most of it to one sidedly dominate the other three and guarantee victory. BUt now, he was receiving serious injuries because while they could not exhaust his mana, they were able to soften up his body and tear through his defenses.

Shirou charged at Jack with his blades while summoning others. He could not attack through walls or floors anymore, but that did not mean he could not use any swords at all. Creating them from nothing, Shirou cut through all of the illusions and managed to locate Jack, and struck at him directly. Jack blocked with his staff, and jumped back as he created a wave of water that flooded Shirou to push him back.

But that was not enough to stop him, and he cut through the water to get to Jack.

"Frozen Pierce!"

Jack shot even more ice spikes at Shirou, but this time he had learned the attack and dodged them. Yet where he dodged to, a second spell had been cast simultainously. This was Jack and Akira working together and utilizing a skill called Multi-Cast which let them cast multiple spells at the same time. A truly powerful and dangerous skill, neither of them had ever acquired it before. Jack had always been too lazy to try and learn how to do multiple things at the same time, and Akira never had the time. But as their personalities had still not fully merged, while it would create some conflict with them till they did, it allowed them to effectively have the skill Multi-Task.

"Activate Noble Phantasm! Hidden Hand!"

Activating yet another Noble Phantasm, a set of seven cards appeared around Jack. Jack selected one, and suddenly the staff turned into a large sword. Shirou tried to block it, but found that somehow despite being a Caster Jack's strength was suddenly far stronger, not counting the boost spells he had active. In fact, he felt as if it was the strength of Sabre.

"Class change?!"

Suddenly Shirou unleashed a large amount of blades around him to prevent Jack from getting close. Jack backed away while pressing another card, and his sword glowed and turned into a bow. He quickly drew from it and several arrows made of magic appeared. He released them all at once, and the arrows launched right at Shirou.

However, Guardian was not that easy to defeat. He used his Unlimited Blade Works to block them. Yet, one arrow changed trajectory mid flight and bypassed his blocking, hitting him in the right shoulder. At the same time, Jack drew from his bow and this time over three dozen arrows of magic light appeared in it.

This fight certainly was not going well for Shirou, because Shirou had expended too much energy on the other three. And in truth, Jack was expending a lot of mana to keep this going. But, this was not a battle of mana conservation, but a battle of if Jack could defeat the enemy before running out of mana.

So he fired these arrows, and Shirou tried blocking them while this time having spare swords in reserve to block the ones that moved. But this time, every arrow changed trajectory and he got his all over as he could not adjust all the swords in such a precise manner to block them all.

 _"Jack, switch! We cannot maintain Archer, the mana cost is too high! Switch back to Sabre or Caster who have better mana efficiency!"_

Hearing Akira's voice in his head, Jack too could feel the strain of Archer on them and quickly switched back to Caster. Unfortunately, although the Noble Phantasm Hidden Hand let them utilize various different classes, there were some that just did not personally fit with their style. Archer was great, but for them to switch into Archer was not the best in this situation because in order to score damage against Shirou, they had to seriously overcharge the attack and spend a lot of mana. Although it looked like they did a lot of damage there, Shirou seemed to be exceptionally at learning enemy moves and abilities and they would likely be unable to hit again with that, at least for an amount of damage that was worth it.

Jack also had some classes he just knew would not work. For example, Berserker. It would likely shut down all their other abilities, and would be target practice for Shirou. Which left Caster, Lancer, Rider, Sabre, and Assassin. Assassin had weak stats and in this envirornment was ill advised. Besides, Jack could already create illusions and use invisibility and concealment magic as a Trickster Caster, so it was pointless to even switch to that.

So Jack went with Caster, and used the same Multi-Element attack Akira had used earlier but with a higher level of power. Now that his memories were no longer foggy, not just Jack but Akira too could use more powerful magic. And as such, the attack he sent at Shirou, being made of fire and lightning as well, could not just be blocked with blades. It forced Shirou to dodge.

 _"Do you plan to run us dry?! The mana you used in that is excessive! We cannot keep this up forever, and at this rate, we may run out of mana in just a few minutes!"_

"Relax, don't get so anxious Akira. I am just about done".

 _"You do realize if the other three had not weakened him already, we would be dead right now right?!"_

"Just shut up and let me concentrate so I can save your friends and claim this False Grail fragment".

Jack lunged at Shirou again, his staff supercharged with elemental energy and he released a full scale attack against the Guardian. Guardian who had just dodged was still off balance and did his best to block with his swords using all the mana he could muster, noticing his own weakness in the process. But, in his judgement and action he had forgotten something.

Jack was a Trickster.

His swords blocked an illusion, as the real Jack appeared behind him and hit him right in the back. At the same time, with the lightning and fire disrupting his focus, Jack pushed his mana circuits past his limits and Class Changed right there into Sabre for just a second, and with a final motion cut Shirou in half before his defenses re-organized.

Shirou's body turned into light and dissipated, and Jack quickly dismissed the Class Change. He could tell he was almost out of mana and so he rushed towards the Grail Fragment to claim it.

But the moment he tried, an arrow flew out of nowhere and pierced his leg. At the same time, two pairs of footsteps could be heard entering the temple. It was the two that everyone had totally forgotten about in all this fighting.

John Wilkes Booth, Assassin, and Robin Hood, Archer, entered the temple with smiles on their faces.

"Thanks for all the help".


	18. FateBroken V1 C18

Fate/Broken V1 C18: The End of the Beginning

==Assassin POV==

"Shit..."

Jack cursed as the last two they wanted to show up at this time, Assassin and Archer, walked out of the shadows.

"Ah, come now. Did you not just pull this exact same stunt with that Servant there? Considering that one of you noticed me earlier somehow you should have expected this. So, shall we do this the easy way or the painful way?"

"Don't bother lying, I know you are planning to kill us all".

Jack had already used nearly all of his Mana, so against a pristine Assassin of his ability there wasn't a snowball's chance in hell that he could win currently. In fact, the one who posses the most combat ability was Gil at the moment who had time to heal and did not receive critical damage.

However, as they were aware of that, despite the fog still being present Archer was pointing his arrow right at Gil. If Jack had to guess, it had something to do with the goggles on his head. They looked like night vision goggles, but Jack suspected they were thermal.

Jack's Noble Phantasms were still active, but Assassin who had that irritating ability to learn the True Name and Noble Phamtasms of whoever he looked at meant he could have prepared for all of them.

"Wait! I know when I am beat, but now is not the time to be killing each other!"

"Oh, how so?"

"Dismissing that Servant would have only disrupted the Grail's consciousness. Unless I seal it properly it will only keep sending Servants to try and kill us and refuse to grant any wishes. In the first place, I suspect it cannot grant any wishes in its current state anyways. So unless you want to be hunted down by the Mages Association without anyone else for them to look for, you have to keep us alive!"

Hearing those words, Assassin just shrugged it off.

"Why would the Mages Guild...sorry, Association hunt us down? We have nothing to do with them".

It was Gil who spoke out this time, laughing as he emerged from the Fog. There was no visible wound on his body other then a black eye, and it seemed he still had some mana left.

"We have a fragment of a Grail, Servants without Masters who run amok, and there are still other unanswered questions and mysteries. They will descend upon us like the wraith of god. And besides, even if we are injured there are four of us. At least one of you will die in this fight, even if it takes several of us to do so".

"Well then, here is the problem. You will get in our way sooner or later, so we should just kill you here anyways. Otherwise everything we did here would be pointless. And there is the chance we would kill all of you".

"Then here, take this".

Suddenly in response to that, Jack picked up the Grail base and threw it at the feet of Assassin and Archer.

"I just finished sealing it, and since we now know we are already disconnected from it then it's worthless to me".

"Oi Jack, I never told you that yet! How did you know!"

" I could tell the moment I picked it up. It helps when you can make Magic Items. So, how about you take the Grail piece, and we don't all kill each other?"

Assassin looked around at all of them. On one hand, this was a great chance to kill the whole lot of them. On the other hand, it would still be four on two with one of them being Gilgamesh and they still had some Noble Phantasms active. They could just walk away with the Grail Piece. In the first place, thanks to their own research the Alliance between Archer and Assassin was strong, so they did not want to lose one or the other and reduce their combat strength before they retrieved the whole Grail.

This reasoning was because the Grail actually granted two wishes, not one. Normally it was a Master Servant pair, but because there were no linked Masters it was possible for two Servants to make a wish each.

Looking at the fragment, Assassin decided to pick it up. In truth, the Assassin had another goal for letting them live. It was possible that he would need Caster to find the other pieces, so fighting now which had the risk of killing him was ill advised. And yet, he found this all far too easy and simple. That Jack was just willing to give up the Grail piece? That this was not some kind of trick?

"Archer, did he do anything? Did you spot anything that he did to the Grail piece?"

Even if Assassin was the best at stealth, and had the ability to learn the True Name and Noble Phantasms of anyone he saw, it was Archer that had the best eyes. With his eyes, he would be able to see if Jack tried to do anything to the Grail fragment right in front of them, and as such he would see past Jack the Trickster. Even Jack, who was calmly staring at them, they were sure he had something planned. That this was some sort of trick. After all, he was the ultimate Trickster. Even Loki could get fooled by Jack.

But Archer just shook his head.

"He didn't switch them out. He just picked it up, sealed the damn thing...oh, well fuck".

"What is it, Archer?"

"Jack sealed a piece of the Holy Grail. Who the hell has the ability to do that?"

Suddenly, it was at that moment that Assassin understood just what Jack had done, and what the trick was. But even Assassin, with all his planning and ability, had no chance of beating the trick. Rather, the reason Jack was so willing to give it up was because without Jack, the other Grail fragments would also run amok. Which meant, they had to keep Jack alive. Sure, they could try and kill the others, but what if Jack dove in front of the way? What if he took his own life because they killed everyone he cared about?

And while they could consider taking them as hostages, there was another reason Jack was confident in this decision. That was because the one who had yet to reveal himself, who had somehow kept tabs on all of them and not appeared once, could and likely was nearby. Rider. The wildcard. Which meant that no matter the reasoning, the logic, or the ability, the only play here was to gain something, the Grail fragment, and let Jack and the others go. There was too many risks and unknowns with every other action.

Although because they were essentially playing right into Jack's hand, it irritated Assassin. However, Assassin and Archer also understood that given they went through all that, but did not get the Grail fragment, it would count as Jack and the other's loss. But of course, that would require Assassin and Archer to not lose the Grail fragment they obtained.

"Very well. We will accept this offer. I suppose we will be seeing each other later then".

"Kay. Remember, it can get dangerous at night in the city! Don't forget to lock your doors!"

Jack called out like that as they began to walk away, and Gil just laughed a little at that scene. There was no doubt in anyone's minds that Jack was already planning to steal it back later. That served to irritate Assassin even more, because he currently had no plan of dealing with it.

Not yet, anyways. Of course, if he or Archer learned how to seal Grail fragments, the situation would change. And so that information was something they would need to acquire next.

"I liked him better before he regained his memories".

Because once they had that knowledge, there would no longer be a need to allowing Caster to stay alive. Of course, there was still the matter of finding the fragments as well, but they were certain that with one they could find the others. Likely the fragments would react to each other in some capacity, but until then for now the only real option they could accept was to go with this.

It was still their victory, but it still left a bad taste in their mouth knowing they were getting played like this without being able to do anything about it.

 _But its not just that...looking at Archer right now, it seems he noticed something else..._

As Assassin and Archer walked away into the shadows, Assassin noticed that Archer glanced at something. It hurried out of sight, was small and hard to see in the darkness, but...it looked sort of like a weird large metal bug with glass eyes.

Or in modern terminology, a robot bug.

==Unknown POV==

A man sat in a chair with a lot of computers and monitors in front of him, all interconnected with various other electronical devices and enhancements. But not only that, but there were other more abstract parts connected...parts created with and for Magecraft in mind. ANd on the monitors, in the center two he had a live feed of Jack and the others still in the temple, and another which had been watching Assassin and Archer until they went down a dark tunnels and got out of view. Since they seemed to notice, the man did not bother to have it follow them. Behind him was another man, leaning against a wall in this poorly lit room.

"They probably have already darted ahead to lose us anyways, and if we did get close with that one they would just end up destroying it. Best not to risk such an occurrence. Still though, it appears that while they noticed Rider as well...but it looks like others were also watching with interest".

"It took them a single day to discover the first Grail Fragment, but to be fair that was also the easiest to find. Even we knew where it was, although it was too strong for us to deal with at the time. That said, there seems to be another party also keeping watch on this. Could it be the Holy Church? Have they already arrived as well?"

"Gil was unexpected, but it worked in our favor in the end that he had a connection to Caster. As for the third party...there is only one possible culprit there. I am a but surprised they did not notice though...no, Gil might have, but chose not to mention it at the time to avoid distracting them".

As they spoke, they switched the monitor to show the fight between Gil, Lancer, and Sabre against Berserker. A video which should not even exist as the battle took place inside a Dimensional Realm isolated from normal space.

"Well, what should we do Commander? These Servants seem like they may be fitting in well, but they are also unstable. In the first place, there is no doubt Clock Tower will want us to capture them and the Grail fragments. It is simply too dangerous to leave them be, after all".

"Maybe so, maybe not. It depends on what our new leader has to say about it. At the very least, she will be interested in the appearance of Shirou Emiya after all".

"Shirou...Gil reacted strongly to that name. Just who is he? I never heard of that Heroic Spirit, and when I searched it up it was all locked up in secrecy".

"Sorry, but that is a matter that cant be explained so easily, and many parts are classified. Anyways, I believe our monitoring protocol should be sufficient. Send the reports back, but until I say otherwise we will avoid interfering unless necessary. After all, whether they themselves or just their power is needed, they are the key to the advancement of the Mages Association and the World of Magecraft".

"Understood, Commander".

"Good. And stop calling me Commander already. That nickname is very old. Just use my real name..."

The man in the shadows stepped out, and revealed a very familiar face.

"...Michael Cross".

One of the people who lived in the same shared apartment as Akira, and also a Mages Association high ranking member, Michael Cross. Responsible for the investigation into the island that an extremely few number knew did not exist until very recently, and a man with recorded strength equal to Heroic Spirits themselves. Someone who could be an ally...or an enemy...

==End Volume 1: The Beginning of Everything==


	19. FateBroken V1 Afternote

Fate/Broken V1 Afternotes:

Hey everyone! I hope you all enjoyed Volume 1 of this story! I managed to have a pretty rapid update speed, but that is because the Holidays gave me the time to do so! Plus, all the other volumes will likely be longer then this one, so it is doubtful the pace will remain this fast.

If you are reading this without reading the other chapters first, please go back and read them! I randomly encountered the Traffic Stats earlier and got curious about what they said, and I noticed a lot of strange things. Mainly, on occasion, there was one chapter that did not get as many visitors, but after that there was a chapter that got a surge of them! I don't know, maybe it does not track views/visitors properly, but please do not skip any chapters of this story! All are important!

Now, PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU DO THIS AS SPOILERS TO THE PREVIOUS VOLUME WILL BE MENTIONED HERE!

Akira being Jack from all those legends was obviously one of the main mysteries for this volume. There were many clues left behind to point to him, but I do admit I was trying not to make it obvious either so maybe you missed them. There were also hints in certain diologue, but let me point out a few of those hints and references once more:

1: When talking with Robin Hood in the Diner, during his rant, he made references to Jack the Protagonist and also he was described as a Jack of all Trades around that same time, mainly due to his elemental magic.

2: He employed a large amount of tricks when he fought, which included the use of illusions and appearing behind the enemy. He also tricked Gil in a sense into revealing more information, even if it did not seem like it. That is because not all tricks are so identifiable and straight forward, and in essence a true trick is the opposite of that.

3: Although he was willing to go on adventures, it should be noted that in terms of desires, he just wanted to calmly live and relax in this world. This is a reference to Jack the Trickster's laziness.

4: Dishonesty was a huge thing for Akira. Although maybe he did not really lie, he rarely spoke the truth or at least the whole truth. He had alternative motives for going to the Museum and the Port, he neglected in telling them about the territory until after they were well inside, and he did not mention all the effects of his territory (It was assumed in Volume 1 he modified his territory when he cast Dimensional Realm, but in truth it had those as emergency functions. Gil knew Akira when he was Jack, and used those abilities as a basis, but Akira was still Akira at that time so Gil mistook the planned emergency changes as on the spot changes).

5: His memories were reported as scattered, nonsensical, and odd. This is a reference to the fact that the legend of Jack the Trickster is not particularly singularized, especially in modern media, and about how he went on a lot of smaller separate adventures then one combined adventure. This is also why he had no real desire until he awakened his True Name, because Jack was not a single entity until he remembered. Until Akira reclaimed his True Name Jack, and the link remembered, he was not a full character. Now that he is whole again, he has returned to being a full character.

Well, there are other points, but I don't want to go on forever. After all, there are other mysteries that we have yet to get answers for. Some mysteries may only span a single volume, but others will span multiple volumes. The current mysteries remaining are:

Rider's Identity and Goals

What happened to the Grail?

Where are the other Grail fragments?

How will the Mages Association and other established organizations work in, and the goals they will aim for?

Who is Michael Cross? (Since obviously there is more to him then what I gave)

And a few others as well.

But here is a recap of who is who:

Caster: Akira Romji/Jack the Trickster, Confirmed Noble Phantasms: Abilities: Fool's Luck, Realm of the Storyteller, Hidden Hand. Weapon also seems to be special, but unconfirmed if it is a Noble Phantasm.

Lancer: Bradamant (Bray for short), Confirmed Noble Phantasms: Her weapon which is her Magic Lance, and her ability: Supercharged Speeder. (NEW!)

Assassin: John Wilkes Booth. No Confirmed Noble Phantasms, but his weapons are likely them as they pierce through all defenses.

Archer: Robin Hood. Confirmed Noble Phantasms: His Crossbow, and also the Ability: Plunder.

Sabre: Jean D'Arc. Confirmed Noble Phantasms: Joan of Arc as an Ability, and her weapon which is a sword.

Rider: Total Unknown.

Berserker: Fafnir. Confirmed Noble Phantasms: Dragon Form. Defeated at Sakura Bathhouse/Dimensional Realm.

Gil: Gilgamesh, technically an Archer. Was summoned and accidentally permenantly manifested by mistake after someone summoned his Older Half as a Heroic Spirit. It should be noted that he is aware, and is the one who confirmed, that the Grail has altered the timelines repeatedly in the past. While no specific number is given, and he is not even aware of it, he would report it has been "At least one thousand including all the time and reality rewrites". It is this information that clears up that all previous events, in terms of this story's cannon, in all the Fate universes have happened at one point or another, and that because Gil is outside the system due to his atypical situation he is one of the very few aware of it. His Confirmed Noble Phantasm is Gates of Babylon, which is just an excuse so no one has to type out the whole damn list of millions. He also is Jack's best friend.

Leena Reeves, Alexandria Torretta, Okija Toura: The "normal" people that Akira shares an apartment with.

Michael Cross: High Ranking Mages Association Member. Also a person that Akira shares the apartment with.

Shirou Emiya: Recap not needed here. If you do need one, go rewatch the Fate series.

Anyways, thanks for reading so far! **REMEMBER TO READ ALL THE CHAPTERS DAMNIT!** I hope you stay tuned for what I plan to make a long term series!


	20. FateBroken V2 C1

Fate/Broken V2: How Things Fit Together

C1: The Morning After

(And so now, let us begin a new volume that will be full of action, adventure, mystery, and the moments inbetween, even the embarrassing and comedic ones we all know and love!)

==Unknown POV==

In the early dawn, at the New Tokyo Airport, a standard airliner had just finished coming into the terminal and was allowing the passengers to depart. There were plenty of people who were disembarking, having just arrived to the city and island of New Tokyo, some were tourists and others were visiting family. And then a few were moving into the city for other reasons.

And in that setting, a woman and a young girl emerged with the appearance of a mother daughter pair and entered into the open sunlight.

"Ahhhh, isn't this nice. It looks like they are doing a good job of keeping the air clean too. Isn't that wonderful?"

The woman spoke up, smiling as she looked around, but then noticed her daughter seemed a bit agitated.

"Oh, are you okay sweetie?"

"Its just...its been really long. Is it really here? We will be able to play again? It is really confusing".

"Yes yes, don't worry. Soon we will be able to play. As for what is confusing, does it matter? Now we have a second chance, correct?"

She moved her hand and patted the head of her daughter with it. And quite notably, resting on that hand was the mark of a Master with all three Command Spells. As for her "daughter", she was in truth a Servant. The two were not sure what happened or why. One moment, they were just defeated during a Great Holy Grail war, and now they found themselves awake yesterday, with plane tickets approaching an airport. Furthermore, although it felt strangely weak, they felt the presence of a Grail here.

And instead of questioning their luck or what happened previously, the two chose to move here. As it seemed a Grail existed here, they decided to go after it as they would probably get pulled in again anyways. They did remember their deaths, but it seemed that somehow they were brought back. However, although unaware of this, the girl whose true identity was Jack the Ripper was actually different. She was the same person, but her composition was no longer one of many wraiths, but the consciousness that had manifested thanks to her master's, Reika Rikudou, love and affection.

"Now now sweetie, we bet get moving. We need to find you breakfast after all".

"Yay! Breakfast!"

And so in the early morning, one of the most infamous serial killers arrived at the Island of New Tokyo at it's city, and would set forth another chain of events that would get others involved.

==Akira POV==

I could feel it trickling in, its warmth and its annoyance as it surely enlightened the room around me. How it filled my mind with energy, but also how it forced it awake. It was the blessing and curse of the morning, with that being the light of the rising sun pouring through my window and into my room. As my consciousness awakened, I could feel a lot of familiar things. Both new and old for that matter, but at first I began to remember what happened next.

I fought against a Guardian Class Spirit, someone I had never heard of before. It was a tough fight, and I could only beat him using tricks and deceptions and not in a straight up fight. And he had already been weakened by Gil, Bray, and Jean beforehand so he was a seriously injured Heroic Spirit.

So, it was not quite a victory to be proud of.

Anyways, after that I remembered the staredown with Assassin and Archer, and somehow I managed to talk them down. Or rather, Jack did. Well, me and Jack were the same person, but our personalities were still a bit different so until we finished assimilating, we were like two versions of the same person that existed at once inside a single body.

After that though, once they had left, the tension finally cooled down. And my body remembered the state it was in before, and between that and mana exhaughstion, I ended up passing out...

Well, it looked like I had been carried to my bed. That in itself was fine, but for some reason I was naked. Well, covers were over my entire body, but there was something else that when I realized it was there, surprised me.

Or rather, who was there.

"G..Gil?!"

Since this would surely cause some sort of misperception to anyone in the modern era who learned of this, such as my Akira self, let us have Jack-kun and his memories help explain. Modesty and negative thinking of the naked form was only a recent development, as in the last century or two. And this idea that everyone who slept in the same bed together had to have some sort of romantic feeling was also a more recent idea, though it was less wrong in the past.

Anyways, although certainly it was not like everyone wanted to make naked all the time, or was naked all the time, it certainly was a lot more common and accepted in the past. Swimsuits were only a recent creation, but recreational swimming existed long before that and wet clothes are annoying to be in. Now granted, I was not some history book on every era so I cant point out everything, but in the past siblings, cousins, and even friends would sleep together in the same bed, even naked and especially in the summer, and it was never seen as anything romantic, especially when they were our (appearance) (But also kind of our mental too) age. And me and Gil had been best friends back in those days, so while we ate together, played together, worked (though mostly him) together, and went on adventures together, we also swam together, bathed together, and shared the same beds together.

So for all those who would view this in a perverted manner, please go and learn history and culture first thank you very much!

Anyways, that said, I was still Akira as well as Jack, so waking up naked in a bed with Gil laying right next to and touching me was extremely shocking and I cried out in surprise as I fell backwards onto the bed again.

With that noise, Gil finally seemed to stir.

"Oh good, you are awake...and it looks like you are feeling better".

"G..Gil...why are you in my bed".

"Oh...right, you are still Akira. Well, you should not be too embarrassed. After all, with your memories unlocked, this is not the first time this has happened. Though, I admit the reason it looks like I enjoyed it a bit more was from the nostalgia".

"But...but...don't you have your own bed?!"

"Oh right, you were passed out...well you see, being the idiot that you were, after waking up and flying here, did you forget your body had been in a bad condition you never took the time to fully recover from?"

As I thought back, I do remember that I passed out with a heavy fever and head throbbing before that battle...and that, I don't think I had fully recovered from it before the adrenaline kicked in...

"Well...yeah..."

"Well, given you were also still Akira, and that Leena is a bit weird even for my standards, it was either I sleep with you and keep a check on your condition overnight, or Leena would have dragged you into her bed and..."

As I heard the explanation, I felt my face go red and heat up with embarrassment. In other words, I had been one step away from a far worse situation...

"Well, if I recall correctly, you were not really interested in the pushy type. Well, she gave in on the room thing, but she did state as she was essentially your guardian and caretaker, she was the one who got you changed and made sure you were not in a critical situation. Well, not like you need to be embarrassed anyways right?"

"Gil...even if I am Jack, I am also still Akira...and yes there is!"

"Haha, sorry sorry. But come now, just look at me! I have total confidence in my body! Come on, you gotta build your confidence back up! You should just go the entire morning as is! I will help you!"

Although maybe he was being helpful before, and maybe he was way older then he appeared, Gil was still a mischevious boy. Catching onto the fact he was partially doing this just to tease me, even if the other part was genuine helpfulness, I...no, myself and Jack were both glaring at him.

"Gil...are you ever going to outgrow that mischievous side?"

Hearing those words which sounded like a challenge, Gil narrowed his eyes right back.

"You going to make me?"

Still feeling a bit embarrassed from my own personality, I...or maybe it was Jack, who is also me so still I, felt a familiarity. Me and Gil were best friends before all this, and still best friends even now. However, that did not mean we never had a disagreement...or a fight...

And so marking off this morning was me lunging at Gil to teach him a lesson for teasing me like this, though neither of us used magic or Noble Phantasms or any weapons at all this time around. This went on for awhile until Leena barged in, which only embarassed me of course, and reprimanded us for fighting like this before breakfast. She almost tried to make us go eat breakfast before even getting dressed, but I was able to use my words to make her worry if it was still good or if it was ready yet, and she left us alone so we could get dressed while she finished making breakfast.

"You know, she actually seems normal to me".

"Gil, shut up".

Eventually, the two of us made it out of my room and we sat down at the kitchen counter as Leena gave us a good morning breakfast.

She also happened to scold us, or rather me in a discreet matter.

"Now remember to take it easy today, you two. Got it?"

"Kaaay!"

Responding in the same fashion, we dug into our breakfast which was eggs, bacon, and toast with a glass of orange juice each. Alex just looked at us for a bit while shrugging it off, but Okija looked amused. As for Cross, it appeared he had to go into work early.

"Come to think of it, where does Cross-san work?"

"That is right. I don't think he ever told you. Well, whatever. At least it's nice to see you finally making friends your own age, Aki-chan".

"I have friends my own age!"

"Can you name a friend outside this room right now? And Cross and those other two new neighbors don't count".

I found myself unable to respond to that. It was true, Akira before I woke up, not as Jack but just woke up yesterday, was a bit of a loner. In that sense, the interaction between me and Gil was actually great in their eyes. Actually, Jack also was a bit of a loner in his past too. His adventures often featured him alone with some exceptions, such as his sister Jill, or his brothers Tom and Will. Gil was pretty much one of my only serious friends, though I did have a few others in the past. Merlin was sort of my frie...

"Ow! What was that for?"

Gil subtly jabbed me in the ribs. After I cried out a bit, he just leaned closer and whispered something into my ear.

"I can tell from your face what you are thinking about. If you are about to consider Merlin a friend, may I remind you that while maybe you were friendly, by that time you were like five hundred years old and you were actually the one who taught him magic. So it was more like a student/teacher relationship".

"Th...that was not who I was thinking of!"

"...it totally was. Okay, I do need to know. Why is it you are really bad at lying only about this kind of stuff? I mean, you thoroughly got me to believe that one time that everything that one girl said about me, and how she looked at me, was just masking her true feelings for me, and there was never a hint of deception. And yet, when it is about stuff like this, you are shit at it?"

"Shut up. At least I was not afraid of the dark till I was nine".

Hearing that, maybe for the first time in forever, Gil had a look of being embarrassed.

"Shh! Even when whispering, don't bring that up! And it was your fault! You are the one who as a practical joke when I was six, placed a Shadow Monster in my closet!"

"Oh yeah? And what about..."

And so as the two very old friends ate breakfast with a childlike atmosphere and conversation, competing against one another like old times, the morning for that day began with a mix of peacefulness and excitement.

(AN: And the start of Volume 2 is here! Jack the Ripper is back now, Cross is off someone doing something, Akira/Jack are adapting to the new situation and getting into trouble of all kinds, and Gil is finally flustered! Wonder how many more surprises I will be able to throw at you...I know of at least one...)


	21. FateBroken V2 C2

Fate/Broken V2 C2: A Day at the Beach

==3rd POV==

"See? Wasn't this a great idea?"

"I get that...but why are we here?"

"Well since Akira invited Gil, I thought we should invite you two as well!"

A group of apartment mates and neighbors now currently stood clad in swimwear on the warm, lovely, sandy beach as the warm air of the ocean drifted onto the shores. To be specific, this group consisted of Akira/Jack, Gil, Leena, Alex, Jean, Bray, and Okija. The reason Okija was there was because this was his day off, and because they had Akira's friend stay over and no one else was doing anything, they decided to take advantage of that and take a quick trip to the beach.

It was a nice, warm day with decent wind, so the conditions had also been perfect. If there was anything truly odd, in a spot by a trash can Akira had for some reason gone over there to throw something out instead of at a closer trashcan, but then buried something in the sand near it when no one was looking and then forced it down further by pushing it with his bare foot. In fact, it was only Bray and Gil who noticed.

Once Akira ran back, Gil subtly questioned him on it.

"So, what were you doing over there?"

"Territory creation. Same as the one at home. Like hell I am going to allow the cliché incident of 'we are doing something peaceful but then an enemy returns to attack us' situation happen".

"Ah, I see...so we can all relax then, good".

In truth, Sabre and Lancer had their guard up. Which while was not obvious to the untrained, especially since they were both wearing bikinis, was something those with battle experience had noticed.

Well, Leena had also noticed it. It seems she was not oblivious to that sort of tension, or perhaps her experience from yesterday had allowed her to notice.

"Still though, Aki. I know this beach was closer, but...really? Do we have to? The other one would have been a lot more pleasant..."

"Gil...don't think I didn't know what you were planning. And that was a clothing optional beach, we totally would have stood out".

"...we will probably stand out anyways, and it can't be helped! I wanted to swim again like in the old days, not with these weird pinching swimsuits..."

"Haven't you been around for a lot longer then me? And you are not used to it?"

"The only reason you are was because of your memory incident! Honestly, spending all those resources just to make clothing to swim in...how silly".

"I don't want to hear that from you, Mr. 'I will horde all the treasures in the world!".

"You say this now, but didn't you once spend a whole day naked because you were too lazy to deal with clothes?"

"How is that relevant?! And I don't recall that ever happening!"

"Oh yeah? I sure do!"

"Oi? You two really do get along quite well, don't you?"

Listening to all this, Bray could not help and state that after sighing. However, despite what she expected their reactions to be, they were completely different from expectations.

"Of course! Great friends do this all the time, right?"

"Naturally we are. Isn't it obvious from our dialogue?"

"Yeah. I am really glad that this part of them has already assimilated. It's always fun to talk like this with him".

"And I always enjoy talking some common sense into this 'King of Heroes'".

"You common sense has never been common!"

"It is now! Its you who no longer has common sense!"

"Hey hey! You are disrupting the other beach goers now? Why don't you two go play in the ocean if you are going to cause a racket".

"Kaaay!"

Putting down the luggage they were carrying and taking off their T shirts, the two ran in just their swimming trunks into the ocean.

Seeing that, Bray began to look around at everyone else which caused Jean to become curious.

"What Bray?"

"Is it me, or has the quality of men decreased in terms of physical appearance since our time despite all their technology?"

"I don't think their faces are that bad..."

"Yeah but...remember how many hunky, muscular men were around in our times?"

"...I see your point. Its true, their quality has diminished. Must be because of all the technological advancements, they do not put as much importance of physical training".

And so while that conversation went on its course, Akira and Gil waded into the ocean, only stopping when it got to their knees.

"Ahhh...its been so long since we got the ocean Aki...or Jack. What name do you plan to go by, anyways?"

"You mean after the personalities merge? Not sure, decided to cross that bridge when we get there".

"...as carefree as always...hey!"

Gil was in mid retort when suddenly a splash full of water came right at him. Turning around, he saw the one responsible smiling mischeviously.

"I see...so that is how you want to play it huh Aki?"

"What? You think you can do better?"

With wry smiles on their faces, Gil proceed to move his foot around while making use of Heroic Spirit stats. This allowed him to use the force to kick up a huge wave right at Aki, getting him drenched.

"Oh, so that is how you want to play it huh...better prepare a good battleground then! Dimensional Realm!"

Sealing them off from the outside world, Aki created a beach realm with water that depending on where they stood, could be up to their knees, ankles, or even in some areas past their heads. There was one island nearby that was above dry land, but that was it.

At the same time, several pillars of water emerged behind Aki as he had a playful look on his face. At the same time, Gil opened up several Gates of Babylon behind him. The moment Aki sent those pillars of water flying towards Gil, Gil opened up several Gates of Babylon below the water's surface that linked to the ones he had open, and effectively made large scale water guns.

Thus, the largest scale water battle in known history began. But if they countered the ones not in history, then there were a few that beat this one. Most involved Gil and Aki as well, for that matter. But what neither of them realized was that before they had cast the spell or even before Akira established his Territory, there was already someone watching them. A man on a building far off, looking through a magic crystal was watching everything while on the cell phone with someone else.

"Observation reports are as follows. No signs of the Mages Association, but I am sure they are there. They appear to be playing, however their play involves the use of high level magic that most would view as attacks".

"Understood. Continue to monitor them, Simon".

The man looked through the crystals, as the boys continued to play in a rather rough manner. If either of them were normal humans, they probably would have died by now.

"As you wish, my Lord Fafnir".

And so as he uttered the name of the Berserker that should be dead, he watched with amusement at the spectacle before him.

ANd meanwhile...

"Ocean, become a force that floods the battlefields of my enemy! Overflowing typhoon!"

Akira summoned huge waves of water that would have knocked Gil away if he had not used his chains to anchor himself. Additionally, he had out now a sword. Or rather, it might be more accurate to call it the handle of the sword, as the blade itself appeared to be made of pure water.

"Take this!"

Gil pushed off the surface of the water itself, his bare feet enhanced so that he could stand on the water. He shot through the waves like a cannon, and came at Akira with his water blade to completely soak the boy. Yet Akira brought up a water shield to block, and pushed it into Gil to soak him instead. But Gil predicted that as well, swinging his foot around and splashing Akira with another wave of water. Akira gathered water around his feet and legs, and overjumping the shield and sword, came down with a kick of water from above that allowed him to drench Gil.

The two were using combat level magic for a simple game, but the two had smiles on their faces that showed just how much fun and happiness they had doing so. Full of joy and energy, the collision of their water attacks sent a shockwave that nearly broke the Dimensional Realm itself.

Actually, Bray and Jean outside noticed the Dimensional Realm now, and that there were minor cracks in it.

"Those two...they really are children huh?"

"Well, its fine right? This is supposed to be the day that they enjoy themselves".

And as they said, the two were enjoying themselves. Wrapping his arms and legs with water, Akira pushed off of a wave with his feet and unleashed a flurry of unarmed attacks at Gil to completely submerge him in water.

He was able to block some of them with his water sword, but he ended up getting quite wet.

"Seriously...you know, aren't you going too far with this?"

"Well, I gotta pay you back for mocking my Magic Item".

"Ma...magic item?! Me?! When did I mock it?!"

"Where do you think these swimsuits came from?"

"These swimsuits are magic items?!"

"Yeah. They cant be accidentally knocked off, they have a higher Magic Resistance then you, me, and Sabre combined times five, and they can even project energy armor if needed".

"When did you make these super way too high spec swimsuits?!"

"Sometime before I awoke, it seems. There is a lot of magic items in my room..."

"...exactly why did you start with premade magic items and territory again?"

"Who knows? Anyways, I hope you are ready! Here I come!"

As pillars of water rose out and swarmed Gil, Akira summoned forth various water arrows to strike Gil directly and also swung his own leg around and created a massive wave of water just like how Gil did to him. Gil in return swung his aqua sword around and created a massive wave of water to absorb all the attacks and block it all, but in that moment he realized he lost sight of Akira.

"Too late!"

And then from behind, a huge wave of water soaked him silly.

Although now Gil knew why Akira had so much force behind it. Jack was known for occasionally being lazy, especially when he didn't want to do something, but when he actually decided to do something like make a Magic Item, he got a bit eccentric when people talked down about them. Or rather, there is a reason Atlantis sunk. But to be fair, they were planning to use his reaction to start a war on them, so Gil ended up helping him and they crushed the plot with overwhelming force.

Akira darted around and with a fist wrapped of water, came around the side and punched Gil with a water fist. But this time, Gil who was familiar with how Jack and Akira fought was able to trip him up and get him to fall into the water. Akira managed to pull him in, but then the two unleashed more water attacks at that last moment before they went fully under...

And that shockwave almost broke the Dimensional Realm.

As Jean and Bray saw this, they could not help but scowl.

"Seriously, what are those two doing?"

"You don't think another servant broke into the dimensional realm and they are doing battle with that one, do you?"

"They better not! This is supposed to be our day off!"

Jean and Bray, who began to feel concerned, entered Akira's dimensional realm...only to see the two of them lying on a beach, soaking wet and laughing.

"That was great!"

"We should come to the beach a lot! Like, all the time! Ohh, can we take the beach back with us Akira?"

However, as the two looked at their surroundings, even though it seemed to be a world made entirely of ocean except for that one island, they could see just how much damage they made from "playing". Furthermore, the Dimensional Realm had cracks all over the inside, with deterioration everywhere. It looked like it was barely holding up after their little session.

Jean, who felt a lot of frustration after seeing this, walked over to them and picked them up by their swimsuits.

"You two! We are leaving, and you are going to play at the real beach like normal kids!"

"Ehhh?"

"Why?!"

"Because it is clear what would happen otherwise!"

"Awwwww..."

"Hey, Gil. I have an idea! Let's get some ice cream then!"

"Oh! That is a great idea! Fudge is best!"

"That is what I keep telling people!"

"You two...oh what the hell!"

She then threw the two of them outside the dimensional realm and into the real ocean, so that they did not just appear out of nowhere on the beach and cause a commotion.

"Come on Bray, lets get back before the others notice we are gone. And, maybe make sure those two don't try and sneak into another Dimensional Realm".

==Jack the Ripper POV==

As they finished having "breakfast", the "mother" and "daughter" pair happened to stop when the daughter seemed to react to something.

"It smells like there are some interesting people here...too many in a group right now, but you think we can have them as desert later mama?"

"If we get the chance to, sure sweetie! I am sure that they would make lovely snacks!"

(And so, the greatest water war ever in history has occurred...but, hey! It sure was fun! Yet there seems to be some foreboding events on the horizon... **ALSO, MAKE SURE YOU REMEMBER TO READ ALL THE CHAPTERS!** Otherwise you might miss out on things!)


	22. FateBroken V2 C3

Fate/Broken V2 C3: A Jolly Welcoming

==Unknown POV==

"Well, as I thought he truly is interesting".

The man who was watching Akira/Jack and Gil simply stated that, admiring their abilities. He looked at his own hand, which then a small ball of fire appeared only for him to dismiss it immediately.

"And it seems they truly understand the Origin Thought. I wonder if that is what makes them strong".

"But, they do lack a certain strength".

The man, who was supposed to be alone, was surprised when he heard another man's voice from behind.

"ANd what might that be, Mr. Impossible to Summon Heroic Spirit? Furthermore, why are you here Rider? Or should I call you Divicaicus?"

"I just learned something I thought you might find interesting. Though, I am still impressed you learned of my True Name, human".

"There is another Rider in town, and also I have sensed a strange disturbance at the airport which headed into town, where it got lost thanks to the energies of the vortex".

"I see...did it effect the Vortex itself?"

"Not that I can sense. But I am not a full fledged Caster, so I may not have detected it".

"But you are a Druid though, and one confirmed in history itself which I suspect is what allowed you to materialize on your own. Well, you are pretty much difficult to summon normally anyways. Anyways, did you learn anything about the identity of the second Rider other then yourself?".

"Well..."

The Heroic Spirit looked a bit nervous, which for a Heroic Spirit who was also a druid was very strange. It did not sound like it boded well.

==Jack the Ripper POV==

Leaving behind the dark alley with her mother that they used as a "shortcut" and "buffet" all at once, the two were happily going around the city and doing some window shopping. Little Jack who still appeared as a young girl, at least a bit younger then both Akira and Gil in appearance, was captivated. Somehow, on this island, everything felt more fresh, more new.

And to Jack, it felt like a wonderland.

These moments of fun seemed to go on and on, but then suddenly something made Jack stop and her mother soon followed.

"What is is dear? Another Servant? I have all my Command Seals again, so we can easily take them on..."

"No...no...not this one, we have to run!"

"But, aren't you concealing your presence?"

"No! He is too sharp! Bad affinity! Bad matchup! Run mama run!"

Quickly shouting to run, the two tried to run into a filled crowd only to somehow end up back inside another dark alley. It was just like they had turned into something, but then somehow wound up elsewhere.

But there was something more eerie then that. And that was despite it being summer time, bells could be heard ringing. And not just any bells.

No, these bells were different. Special. Jack thanks to her appearance sensed them immediately. And sensed the danger. But that appearance also made it easier for him to target her.

Yes, that man landed right in front of them, riding a glittering red sleigh pulled by eight reindeer even though it was summer. A jolly old man in a red suit, with a sack on his back and a full white beard and hair.

"Ho ho ho, whether it be a chimney or rooftops or the street itself, I can always make sure I can get to where I go!".

"It...it can't be...Santa Claus?!"

Indeed, just like how a new Assassin had mysterious appeared on the island, and one Rider had been discovered to be the Druid Divicaicus, another Rider had also appeared. Although there was no master in sight around him, so it was unclear which Rider had a Master and which didn't, unless of course they both didn't. And this new rider was the source of countless legends, countless movies, countless spinoffs, and countless adventures. Santa Claus, the jolly old Spirit of Christmas himself. Out of all the Heroic Spirits, some would argue that he was the ultimate Spirit, fueled by the dreams of children everywhere.

And as a good hint on if his summoning was typical or atypical, trying to specify Santa for a Servant Summoning could be extremely difficult, or extremely easy, but the exact specifics had never been encountered before.

But while the situation might have seemed ridiculous, there was a reason Jack was afraid of this particular Servant once she sensed him. That was because Santa had all the beliefs of children, increasing his power. Even Jack could be called a source of power for him. Their wishes, their dreams, their hopes. The only thing could make it worse is if it was near Christmas or on Christmas itself, when his power would be at maximum.

"Honey, we need to get out of here now!"

"Ho ho ho. I am afraid that only nice children get presents, and naughty children...well, they are on the naughty list".

But even if he was Santa, he was also a Heroic Spirit summoned for battle. And that meant he would not hesitate so easily to act or fight.

Jack could only attempt to charge forward in this situation, given that it was near impossible to outrun Rider, but was quickly swatted away by the large sack of presents.

==Unknown POV==

"Are you freaking serious?! You saw Santa? In his slay? During the dummer? Flying in the sky in broad daylight?!"

"Yeah...hence why I believed this to be an urgent matter. How about the surprisingly not insane Berserker?"

"No, we can't play that card yet. Thankfully, after the fight they were too pre-occupied to remember that the Dragon was a form change, and they did not know defeating it would not kill him but just make him revert back".

That was what happened, yesterday. They defeated the Dragon, but Berserker still lived and was now back to running a company.

"I suppose. It is a flashy card I suppose. Anyways, based on my spy birds it appears Assassin two and Rider two are fighting each other...but, in a straight up fight against this rider, there is no way Jack can..."

"Look out! Arrows!"

Surely enough, arcing across from several blocks away a great many deal of arrows came raining down glad in all sorts of magical energies. Managing not to hit Jack or her master at all, every projectile either disrupted Santa's attack or tried to hit him directly. But the old man was more agile then he looked, and dodged many of them. ANd not only that, he spied John Wilkes Booth, the first Assassin to have appeared, who aimed right at him with his guns and fired. Santa managed to push off of the ground to avoid the hit and landed on his sleigh that began to move on its own as the Reindeer attacked these weird wolves made of shadow energy that appeared.

All of this could clearly be seen using the Magic Crystal Eye, and Rider One's eyesight. Seeing that Santa was distracted however, Jack the Ripper made no signs of continueing, instead picking up her master, concealing their presence, and fled. Seeing this, the other Assassin and Archer quickly moved off as well once they saw that coming.

"Damnit! How did they know about Jack the Ripper and where she would be?!"

"I don't know, but it may have to do with the fact they recovered the first Grail fragment. It produced negative results, as expected, in giving it to them, but none of them could really say anything about the position Akira/Jack was in after that battle when none of them had even managed to help with at all".

"It appears to be so...hmmm, other teams will be assigned to this incident. For now, let us focus on our objective, watching those people and keeping tabs on what they are doing".

==Assassin POV==

"Was that really necessary? Making sure that psychopath escaped?"

Archer and Assassin were already taking a complicated route that went through back allies, under sewers, and through the tunnel network after those attacks that allowed Jack the Ripper to escape.

"Yeah. It should slow down the others, to make them deal with her. But damnit...that Santa guy, he is someone we might want to be cautious of. We never confirmed his Servant Class, but given his steeds it is probably Rider. Were you able to track him after we encountered him and before he flew off again?"

"It seems that either it has some sort of stealth ability that makes it impossible to track while turning it invisible, and that includes his antlered friends. But just great, we just had to get a Servant who has to have tons of power thanks to all the children in the world!"

Neither of them even bothered to consider it strange that Santa had become a Noble Spirit in the first place, given that it meant he died at one point. Considering all that, one had to question if that was really Santa.

But whoever it was, it was in their way and probably going to become an issue. But at least with Jack the Ripper moving around freely again, she would serve as a distraction as Assassin and Archer made preparations and worked on finding out where the other Fragments were and how to seal them, so they could gather them freely and they could just kill Akira/Jack without worry.

But of course, that did not mean they might not cause some other trouble to occur to keep them distracted as well. Because at the end of the day, The Assassin John Wilkes Booth was a master assassin who was very good at manipulating people and figuring things out, as well as getting information he needed. And with those guns of his that could bypass defenses, it could not get any worse for the other heroes other then maybe Berserker showing up again. Now the only issue they would have to deal with is deciding how to handle acquiring funds without drawing attention.

Material worlds were not all upsides for Heroic Spirits, especially when they did not have Masters to rely on.


	23. FateBroken V2 C4

Fate/Broken V2 C4: The Heroic Buffet

==Jack the Ripper POV==

"I think we are finally safe sweetie".

"Un. I think mama is right...oh, mama has yet to have anything to eat yet right?"

"Well first that matters is your meal. Are you all good and fed from this?"

At the moment, the two were standing in an apartment they got some fool to invite them into, making it seem like they were in trouble. It seemed he was a nice, honest man too...but all that mattered to Reika was Jack, and all that Jack cared about other then food was her "mama". No, in truth by now her mama ranked above food, she would never ever consume her soul for food, and inbetween food and her mama Jack would always prioritize her.

But that still did not mean she did not care about "food". That was still her second concern.

Maybe there were others, but that did not matter to Jack. She was only concerned with her mother and getting food.

As they talked this way over a decomposing corpse, the two looked through his brochuers and noticed something was circled for today. Some sort of all you can eat buffet dinner at a nearby dinner.

"Mama! Mama! How about this?! Let's go here! I bet you can get a lot of yummy food here!"

"Ara, this does look nice. Okay, let us borrow some money from this place and use it to pay for our food then. Come now, we should get there before it's all gone!"

"Yeah! And no big meanies should show up there since they don't need to eat people food anyways!"

==3rd POV==

A lot of grumbling stomachs could be heard walking down the street. They were all wearing casual wear, but one could notice if they looked closely enough signs that this group had recently been to the beach.

Yes, this group was Akira's group. After accidentally losing track of time, they ended up forgetting to eat a proper meal during all their fun and lacking the energy to cook, wanted to find a place nearby where they could eat instead. Unfortunately, the café that Akira and Bray went to the other day would not fit their large group at one table, and the diner...well, it was likely Robin and Assassin were based in that area given Robin's ability to prepare there.

Of course, they could have also moved, but tracking those two seemed like it could be extremely tricky and dangerous. In the first place, they don't even have any concrete hints on where they might be, and although they shouldn't be able to much if anything with the Grail Fragment, Assassin seemed to be crafty and intelligent, which made him dangerous.

They probably deliberately took a route with no security cameras or cameras of any kind, that was isolated, and used many turns, back alleys, and likely the tunnels. And although Akira was essentially a Jack of all Trades when it came to magic, it seemed that Assassin was immune to scrying. In fact, it appeared Archer somehow had that ability as well, because when Akira tried this morning after breakfast to get an idea of where they might be, there was no reaction at all.

Anyways, because of all that, they decided to look for things nearby, and Leena had apparently heard of a buffet that was described as Heroic. Furthermore, it's location was actually close enough to the apartment to be inside Akira's territory. Although, on that note...

"Gil...why are we all hungry? We should be Heroic Spirits, right?"

"...I think its a side effect of being independent. Pretty sure something lets us extract energy from the food and turns it into mana, or nutrients to generate mana. And so, so that we are aware of this, we get hungry and need to eat food like a normal person. Or at least its something like that..."

"...a buffet sounds wonderful and lovely..."

"...and as Heroic Spirits, we never have to worry about weight".

That last comment caused the two normal human members to stop and turn to face Bray and Jean.

And their expressions were a mix of shock and jealousy, and held an aura that even made the Heroic Spirits a bit afraid.

"Hold on, I cannot ignore that. Did you just say it is impossible for Heroic Spirits to put on weight?"

Feeling a bit michevous, Gil also decided to chime something in.

"Ah yes! And I think we can't age either!"

"Huuuuuuuuuuuh?!"

Seeing the looks of jealousy and contempt from the two, Bray and Jean tried to calm them down and point out there was nothing they could do as they had no control over it. However...the two then turned to Akira.

Akira meanwhile gulped and was afraid of what would happen next. No, it was not just Akira. Jack who was inside him was also terrified of this. In fact in Jack's history, this exact scene had happened many times in the past. After they realized he was unaging and immortal, forever holding that form, they would always demand to know the secret, and if he told them, then the location of the Fountain of Youth.

Actually, there were a few in the past who tried kidnapping him and drinking his blood, or doing other things, in order to gain that power.

"Akira! Teach us so much magic so we can also do heroic things and become Heroic Spirits!"

"Ehhhhhhh?!"

It was a surprisingly normal request, at least relative to the other people who reacted to this knowledge. OF course, maybe it was because this situation was thanks to being Heroic Spirits and not the Fountain of Youth.

"Err, later, maybe, if you seem compatible. First, lets eat. No way I can do anything on an empty stomach".

"Alright then! Lets make sure you get three plates worth of everything so you have the energy!"

"Wait wait I can't eat that much!"

While having this comedic conversation, the group made it to the buffet place and managed to get a table. Thanks to the fact it was just inside Akira's territory, even their auras as Heroic Spirits would be concealed so no one would be able to sense them if they were nearby.

It truly was a great place. It was not formal, but it was very well maintained and decorated, and even if it was a casual place it wouldn't be strange to consider the place a five star eatery. They also had a lot of tables, so they were easily able to get a six person table by the corner, so they would not have other big tables on all sides and would allow them to enjoy their meal more. Although the tables were already set a good distance away, it could not be helped that someone would be able to hear the people from nearby tables talking.

Especially for Heroic Spirits that have superhuman hearing.

"Actually, I feel like my hearing has improved too".

"Yeah, same".

"I think that might have something to do with my territory creation..."

"Now that I think about it, whenever I am inside this territory you created, it feels like my mind is clearer as well and I feel better then normal".

"Although, Akira's territory creation is strange...it normally has some sort of unique appearance or something, but for some reason his territory can just be created without showing any sign of appearance and such. Normally, they would appear as Workshops, Temples, or even giant flying structures".

"Uh, yeah...anyways, lets just get some food".

"You and Gil go on ahead. We all need to use the restroom".

"Didn't you use one at the beach?"

After Akira absentmindly asked that, the four of them shot him a stare. Gil came to his rescue though by waving them off and then dragging him towards the buffet stand.

"...you, you fool..."

"But, we used the bathroom at the Beach's bathroom right?"

"Yes, after we put on shoes, we did go into pee...but, do you forget well...how those things tend to be?"

After finally getting the hint, and remembering something that made Akira go a bit red with embarrassment, he obediently walked towards the buffet table.

"...I am seriously lucky they did not kill me on the spot..."

"Probably because you are cute to them, and they plan to establish a harem with you".

"Wh..what?!"

"Just kidding!"

"Gil! You jerk!"

Once they reached the buffet table, the two young (but actually old as dirt) boys got a large plate for each of them and they started to gather up a large amount of food for their plates. If anyone bothered to pay attention, the food on their plates would actually exceed the size of their stomachs considering the size of their bodies, but thankfully no one did.

But right as they were reaching for something...

"Oh look mama! We should try this!"

"Hey Gil! This looks delicious!"

Akira's hand and the hand of a young girl touched one of the serving utencils so that people did not just touch everything with their hands directly and cause any issues. But as such, situations like this could happen. The young girl had white hair and green eyes, and was standing next to the one she called "mama" despite not sharing any similar features.

 _Adoption, may...be...hey, she is kind of cute..._

As Akira looked at her a bit more, he could not help but notice she seemed cute. However, the moment she looked back at Akira, there was no reaction at all. No, it was a bit cold actually.

"Let go. This is food for mama".

"Ah, sorry sorry. It's just you are really cute...and...wait what?"

Once again, it was Gil who came in to save him.

"Sorry about that, he has been a bit absentminded lately. Come on, Aki. We have enough".

"Uhh, yeah...let's...huh...sorry for disturbing you! Have a nice day!"

Saying something like that, Akira retreated back to the table with Gil after taking another glance. But once they were far enough...

"What were you doing? You know she is like way too young for you right?"

"Well, not physically...also, either one of us could say that about any woman! No wait, that is not the point! That woman with the girl, I saw something on her hand. Command Seals!"

Hearing that, Gil looked back at the two with concern. Although they were inside Akira's territory, it could not auto detect every enemy. It would only detect people that had hostile or malicious intentions for Akira actively. As such, it was still possible for Servants to enter and leave without Akira ever knowing.

But it also meant that the girl likely was not really a little girl, but a Servant.

"Oh dear..."

And then, meanwhile over at the table that seated the two people in question...

"No doubt! When I touched his hand mama, I felt it! That boy was a servant!"

Jack the Ripper was currently using Conceal Presence so that no one would detect her, so it was possible they did not realize she was a Servant. But of course, they could not be sure.

"For now, given its a public place, let's just enjoy our meal in peace okay?"

"Okay Mama!"

And so, two very different groups had their meals in a place where neither was willing to make a move...


	24. FateBroken V2 C5

Fate/Broken V2 C5: A Problematic Discovery

Later that night, as others had gone to sleep and had begun their rest, there was one boy who was working diligently at his desk. With an assortment of tools, from screwdrivers to vials of blood, he worked and worked as he thought about earlier.

Yes, Akira was working on various new Magic Tools which he could thanks to Item Creation. Among the various things on his desk were numerous colorful marbles, his cell phone, a number of candles, three different new magic formulas, three journals, and other such things. In one journal however, which was one of his main journals, he had various things written. Details about the Grail, a number of theories, and other older formulas. There were also notes about Command Spells and such, and other things jotted down like Reality Marbles and the progress of their development.

Written in a variety of different languages that would make it a code in itself, only Akira who had remembered them all after awakening his memories would likely be able to read it clearly.

And in there was also a note that regarded the normal rules for a Grail War.

"In the end, although we already knew it was not going to be a normal Grail War, but to think we now have to deal with the possibility of multiples of the same class...fuck, it means even though we defeated one Berserker, there could still be another..."

In terms of matchups, Akira/Jack had the worst compatibility against a Berserker. Jack was a famous trickster, and so he could technically use tricks to deal with everyone. Most would think that a Berserker would actually be the best matchup for a Trickster as they are likely the easiest to fool. But that would be a grave mistake, one that would end in Jack's death on many occasions. Berserkers that maybe have more control of themselves and refined thoughts maybe would be better for Jack, but those that run on feeling, instinct, and impulse would be a bad match against Jack. It was likely they would instinctively know the illusions were fake, and react to where they felt Jack was instead of where they thought he was.

In other words, Berserkers were typically too instinctive, too unruly, and too insane to be tricked by Jack and his Trickster Fighting Style. So Jack was destined to have a hard time against a Berserker, especially one that had spent too much of their sanity for more power.

"Two assassins, though we cant know if that girl is an enemy yet given she had a Master with Command Seals, its likely...no no, maybe there is still a chance for peaceful resolution? Since none of us are tied to the Grail? I mean, it would be nice if we could get her on our side...no, no. I should focus on the possibility of a second Berserker. That will be the bigger threat. I need to work on more tools..."

 _"Yeah...probably for the best...besides, she looked pretty young so...it would be wrong to go after her first..."_

"Yeah...lets just focus on getting ready, shoring up defenses, and such..."

 _"And of course, living our lives the way we want to. After all, we don't want to fight, we want to live in this world...maybe, maybe that girl does too...we should probably stop thinking about this..."_

"And get some sleep, you are right".

Akira and Jack decided to call it a night, and head to bed.

Although thinking about Berserker was not necessarily a wrong call as they could ignore the tricks and damage everything, neither Akira nor Jack brought up the point that it was always better to deal with Assassin at times favorable to them, instead of letting Assassin get that advantage as he could utilize it the most.

==Cross POV==

"Well? What do we have so far?"

"Well, in terms of Akira's group, while they did run into Assassin Jack the Ripper, a fight did not break out and both sides left peacefully and uneventfully. However, that might be because Akira's group did not want to let Assassin get the drop on them so they left in a way to avoid being tracked, and Assassin kept her presence conceal up knowing she would have a disadvantage if they got the attack first and also hid away".

"I suppose that should be expected...in the first place, Assassin is not really the full on battle type. Usually they hide away, strike from the shadows, then hide away again. It would be stranger if a fight had broken out in that location".

Cross reviewed the reports of those that were monitoring Akira's group, and had noticed the two that got involved with Santa earlier...although every time someone read that report, they were sure it was a joke. But Cross was taking it seriously, because he understood just how much raw power Santa likely had. He was likely comparable to Berserker or Sabre class, maybe more. Although he understood why many would view it as a joke, in his eyes Santa was a wild card and a potential threat. Although his moral alignment should be good...he did trespass into houses, land on rooftops, and judged people in his own way. So he was likely more chaotic good then lawful good...

In other words, Cross was fully aware of just how problematic this person could end up being.

As for why Cross' people were capable of gathering information in Akira's territory still despite all that without him noticing, it was because not a single one held any malice or negative intention towards Akira. They did not use magic or technology to do this either, but instead their own eyes, ears, and hands. That was why they could bypass the detection of Akira's territory.

"Still though, to think he would be able to use this kind of magic...so the rumor from the deepest archives of the Clock Tower could be true..."

"And what of the other theories?"

"It looks like he is researching a lot of ideas and theories, but...he has yet to uncover the nature of the vortex above the city".

"I see...given the possible theories we have, it would be best if that did not spread. Even we do not know its true nature, but if it is as we believe..."

"A lot of what has happened so far might make sense".

Nodding to those words, Cross checked his watch.

"Guess it is about time to get back".

Cross left the monitoring room, and quickly made his way to the elevator and headed down to street level. He still had his cover to keep up, even if it technically was not his. He was fully aware that everything seemed to have changed two days ago, that this island came into existence two days ago but all of reality warped to make it seem that this island, this city, and everything about it had been there the whole time, with history and charts to show it. Even in the Mages Association Archives this was stated. However, he had been inside a different part of the Archives two days ago. A deep part, protected by something with unfathomable power. As such, although his life had been altered and new memories added, he had kept his old memories.

"This has to be a result of the Holy Grail...I am sure there was an active Holy Grail War at the time...someone must have made a wish, and this island was created as a result. But...this seems too strange. What wish would create this, and if the Grail was won then why are there so many servants now?"

Considering this as he made it to the ground floor, he walked out of the elevator and exited the building which served as a cover for the Mages Association.

"If too many gather, things might get bad...I may need to personally intervene".

Given the lack of any Servant having been actually eliminated yet, excluding the one summoned by the Grail Fragment, there were too many gathering. It meant that the number of conflicts would increase, which would risk the exposure of Magecraft. They actually needed one or two of them to get knocked off, before any more arrived. And of course, the one who posed the biggest risk had to be the Berserker they knew of.

Yes, with too many servants it would surely spell their doom. They already lucked out, the first Caster had been Jack who while was a trickster and maybe could be a bit cruel, was not evil. According to their records, for some idiotic reason nearly every Caster summoned went evil for some reason. As such, as it was now confirmed more then one of each class was summoned, there was concern for the second Caster that would appear.

"If only we knew what happened in the previous Holy Grail War...but, this result changed history so there is no way to confirm what happened".

And so he crossed the street, passing a variety of people. But in a single moment, he reacted when he thought he saw a girl with long white or silver hair pass him. But the moment he glanced back, she was no longer there.

"No...couldn't be...that would be insane".

==Grail POV==

A separation.

It was there for awhile now.

It felt there was more, yet now a piece was gone.

Sealed away?

One would dare seal the Grail?

Vengence is needed.

No, power is needed.

It is too soon for direction action.

That is what the Grail felt. It's thoughts were its actions, its actions were it's thoughts, but at the same time they were separate. Not all actions happened, and not all thoughts occurred. It thought and yet it couldn't. It acted and yet it didn't.

It would need to handle the situation. Or rather, it needed to deal with the threats. So many threats, so many that should serve. But now they all coveted it. All would need to pay. But direct action was impossible. It would be found. A part would be sealed again. Indirect action had to be taken.

The laylines. They all interconnect, but this one area connects better then the rest.

It could influence the city then, it's territory. It's creation.

"I...I want..."

A voice spoke out from it. While acting on its own, evolving, a fragment of the Grail began to understand the concept of self as it acted and reacted. Sending a surge of mana through the laylines, though this method it could not control what happened. But it would cause trouble, and mask the Grail until it gathered the power it needed. A fragment was already present. It would take time before a new Guardian could be called, so this would help buy it time.

And at the same time, what the Grail did just now could pose more of a threat to the Heroic Spirits and the Mages Association then the summoning of an actual Guardian itself, as it essentially just made it so the city would become filled with supernatural phenomenon and magic.

It would not be so obvious, at least in the beginning, but it would not be ignored either.

And so the Grail War took another unexpected turn.


	25. FateBroken V2 C6

Fate/Broken V2 C6: The Call of Knowledge

==Akira POV==

"That jerk! Why did he call me all the way out here at this time of day? And this place no less?"

I found myself shouting such things as I ran early in the morning towards the location mentioned in the text I got from Gil. It was a bit vague and annoying, but it seemed he had something confidential he wanted to talk about. Of course, logically speaking, given it was summer the place he chose did make sense. But at the same time, I could not help but be irritated.

Because what he chose was the middle school from his fake backstory I spawned with.

"For him to use this place...well, the memories should be fake but..."

In truth, it was not that the memories were faked, but reality was warped. All of those memories that shouldn't be true did happen to me in reality, including the deaths of my parents. All of that was real, but it had been warped to be real. I had actually advanced through a lot of grades in his backstory, which is probably why my fake generated identity Akira had been a loner.

The fact that Gil had decided to have us meet here to talk in secret. No one should be around. Yes, everything should be fine.

Stepping onto the school grounds, I saw that as I figured no one would be around, and immediately went towards the Gym which was where Gil should be waiting. Still, I did not understand what was so important or secretive it required all this. And it was outside the Territory. Well, I could just create a new one, but every time I established a new territory I opened up the risk that it would cause strain on the original territory, or let people learn more about it so that they could find a way to counter or break it. As my Territory Creation Skill was a bit unique to me, I had to be careful no one learned what it was truly.

I was not sure if they would be able to use the information if they did learn it, but I had to be safe. If there was a second Assassin, there could be a second Caster. An enemy Caster would be the most likely to make use of that information.

"Gil! You here? What is this all about?!"

I shouted this as I entered the building, closing the door behind me. It did not take me long to see him though, he was sitting on the bleachers playing with his phone. He immediately noticed me, but looked at me questioningly.

At that moment, I already felt a sense of dread.

"What do you mean? I did not contact y..."

The moment he started talking, he realized it too. Without a moment of delay, the two of us rushed towards the nearest exit. But when we tried to touch the handle, a barrier generated and blasted us back with a particularly violent force.

My territory creation prevented tracking inside it, but not communication. So technically speaking, luring someone out using fake calls and texts was entirely possible. And in this case, had been what happened.

And then, at the same time, we heard the shriek of a young girl. But it was not of fear, but rather it was of rage.

Just barely turning around in time, we once more came face to face with Assassin.

"Where is my mama!"

Without even time to dodge, Assassin's blades came at us only to get repelled by my barrier. As for why I had a barrier up, so far I had been targeted by Assassin, Archer, Berserker, and The Grail. I would be an idiot to not have put a barrier on myself at this point.

So having a second Assassin target me, while surprisingly and somewhat soul crushing, was also within my expectations.

==Technical POV Swap==

And so Jack kicked it into high gear. Quickly he and Gil retreated and gained distance against the Assassin. But more then that, on her blades was fresh blood. In other words, this Assassin had already killed someone recently, likely a human to consume their soul and power up. However, the words she said confused Jack. Why did she say mama? The woman with her? Was that her master?

Honestly, this Assassin was extremely confusing, and her being here was also so. This entire space had barriers around it, but this Assassin did not look to also be a Caster. Which meant that someone or something was behind the barrier being there, keeping them trapped inside.

No, Jack could see that there was one door not blocked by a barrier, the one that led into the main school building. In other words, the trap was probably not so simple.

It was only a theory, but Jack figured that the Assassin had been secretly pulled in as well. Possibly through teleportation, which would explain the confusion. Because of the territory, it was impossible to target them with magic like that, but communication was possible so it decided to lure them. However, Assassin was not protected by that so that was why she could be forcibly teleported here.

But it was more then that, Assassin's power and abilities seemed far stronger then what an Assassin should be. It was like she was bolstered, perhaps by whoever was responsible. And also...they felt weaker here for some reason.

As Assassin came down with her two daggers at them, Jack and Gil dodged.

"Gates of Babylon!"

"Ice Pierce!"

Jack and Gil launched their attacks, but Assassin dodged using her agility and speed.

"Damnit...this is two versus one, and its us, so how is this so difficult! Oi, you aren't..."

"Relax Gil, I might find her cute but I am not an idiot to give up my life for that. It seems like she is just a bad apple".

"...I know I should probably make fun of you for admitting she is cute right now, but given this is your actual first love I feel like doing it at this stage is too much even for me to do..."

The two were barely able to dodge as she charged again, surpassing them with speed and agility easily and forcing them to dodge and attack at the same time. Jack unleashed an ice storm and Gil fired off more swords, but she was clearly in charge of this battle as she charged right at them.

Or at least, that is what it seemed.

"Now Gil!"

Suddenly, as Assassin came forward chains shot out of the ground and entangled her. Not just one or two, but dozens shot out to wrap around her and prevented her from moving even by an inch.

The two of them were able to walk up to her without fury.

"In the first place, she was not even fighting like an Assassin. How the hell did she put us on the defensive like that?"

"What I want to know is that why you did not just muster your full power or use a Noble Phantasm to finish this instantly..."

As Jack questioned how Assassin fought and her strengths and weaknesses, Gil looked at Jack skeptically in terms of the fighting ability he showed.

"Relax, like I said I was not going easy. But, I wanted to know what the hell was going on. No one else attacked us, yet clearly someone or something created the barriers. Therefore, I wanted to analyze her and see if i could pick up and trace mana on her to help explain all this".

"Uh hu...what?!"

Before Jack and Gil could get started though, a huge crashing sound could be heard and the chains that bound Jack fell. But instead of attacking them, she seemed more shocked at something behind them. And for good reason, because when they turned around there was a large Minotaur that was raising its axe, as it appeared he buried it into the ground to cut Gil's chains.

"Shit".

"Fuck".

"...must find mama..."

As each had their own reaction, another Minotaur entered the gym through a door on the other side, able to pass through the barriers easily. IN fact, it appeared they were totally unaffected by the barriers and could move through them at will.

The Minotaurs were radiating a fierce power, and they could easily tell they would be difficult opponents. But more then that, Jack could tell it was the same power that radiated from the barriers and, until a little while ago, Assassin.

And at the same time...

"This is an announcement to all students! Gym is over, and class is now in session! And remember, today is bring your parents to work day, so your mamas and papas are here with us. Please, let the lovely assistance staff guide you to where you need to go!"

The Minotaurs glared at them while holding axes, and then charged right at them. If it was a normal situation, Jack and Gil could handle this. But the School appeared to have hostages, and for sure that Girl's "mother" was apparently one of them. ALso, the weakening of them combined with the likely strengthening of the Minotaurs, plus given the shared mana signature likely meant if they defeated one another might take it's place, meant their only option was to run from the Gym and into the school.

Also, it was likely the core of this magic prison was inside the main school building, and if they could destroy that this nightmare would end.

As for Assassin...well, her motives were obvious.

"Temporary truce?"

"Fine...mama takes priority".

ANd so the three of them made a truce and ran towards the doors into the main school building, running away from the Minotaurs chasing them.

==Cross POV==

Cross found himself appearing inside some sort of classroom, at a desk with magic bonds of energy tied to him. It appeared to be some sort of weird prison type magic cast on a school, but Cross was also aware from the research he had already done what school it was.

"I see...a trap set for him then...and this magic, it appears to be some form of weakening magic. However..."

Cross' arms and feet, and then arms and legs, began to glow as he rose and the magic bonds were broken, making it look easy.

"I am highly resistant or immune to this type of magic, so its pointless on me".

He dusted himself off, and then tried hitting a window. However, that did not work.

"Its more focused on the perimeter, probably this is some strange attempt to isolate them and eliminate them. However, the scale of the magic being used even if this location is normally empty at this time of year is too dangerous. Furthermore, the way it resonated...a spatial barrier formed from mana? Yeah, that seems likely. This would be impossible to force through".

As Cross realized this, he decided to try and communicate to the outside world, but noticed that was also being blocked. However, there was one thing he could try...

Before he could think of such things though, he heard a racket outside. Covering one of his own eyes, he created an invisible Spectral Eye that flew through the wall to see what was going on. And what he saw was Akira/Jack, Gil, and the Second Assassin from before running from two Minotaurs. However, thanks to the enclosed spaces the Minotaurs were starting to have trouble. But they were also likely summoned beasts, so if they spent energy to get rid of them it would end badly as they would likely just get resummoned.

"A trap of some kind...but by who? The Second Caster? No matter, it looks like this situation might end badly if something doesn't change...in that case..."

Cross rolled up his sleeve, and revealed several Stored Command Seals.

"By the power of this Command Seal, I order you to break free of the curse and fight at full strength Jack the Trickster!"

And so, while remaining hidden Cross made his move.

(Sorry for the delay, had RL stuff come up! But I hoped you enjoyed this chapter! Feel free to leave your reviews letting me know what you think and like so far!)


	26. FateBroken V2 C7

Fate/Broken V2 C7: The Power of Command Seals

Michael Cross.

A mysterious mage who lives with Akira without him knowing that he is a mage.

Someone who had prior knowledge of what was going on.

And of course, someone who possesses Command Seals even though he has no Servant.

Someone who holds an answer to an unasked question.

But in the end, was he going to be a friend...or a foe?

==Akira/Jack POV==

Although they had thought they were finally gaining ground against the Minotaurs, the trio soon found themselves trapped by a closed lockdown shutter, meaning they had entered a dead end. There was a turn to another hallway, but the Minotaurs were already there and took up any hope of escape.

They were trapped.

"I suppose we have no choice but to fight them then Jack..."

"Yeah".

"Right!"

As Gil said those words, both Jack and Assassin responded. This took Gil a bit by surprise, and then faced Assassin.

"Wait, your name is Jack too?"

Jack just nodded, only now realizing that the boy next to her was also named Jack.

"I...see...so, Jack, you don't mind..."

"Go ahead".

"Alright, Akira, Jack, we gotta take these things out quickly and then hurry on our way. We cant keep fighting them forever after all".

As Gil explained everything, the Minotaurs were closing in on them. But it was at that time, Akira started to glow a bit and felt his power return.

"What just..."

"I am not sure, but I don't feel weakened anymore. Alright, you two search for any hostages and the core! I will keep these two occupied!"

Akira could feel it, his strength and power had returned. It was still two versus one against enemies that would only just come back again and again, and he was not sure why this happened, but in the current situation he could find out later. The important thing was using this power to his advantage. He did consider Command Seals for a moment, but he clearly felt there was no bond between him and any Master so he threw that out entirely.

Akira charged the two Minotaurs, but they just swung their axes down at inhuman speeds and cut right through him. However, that image faded away as it was an illusion, and the real Akira slid under the legs of the one while holding some sort of wire. He angled the wire and used mana to manipulate it to get caught around the legs of the Minotaur, tangling them up. When the Minotaur tried to raise its axe while turning around, it ended up tripping on itself and falling flat onto the ground.

The other Minotaur however swung it's axe freely trying to cut Akira in half. Akira jumped upward while doing a flip and dodged the blow, landing on top of the axe with his hand. Lightning then emerged from this hand and electrocuted the Minotaur. But the first Minotaur had managed to break the wire already, and now swung down on Akira...only to cut through another illusion.

"Dimensional Realm!"

Appearing behind the Minotaurs, Akira tried to open up his own Dimensional Realm when he felt a minor conflict with the space.

"I see...so this school was essentially half converted into a Reality Marble...well then, sucks for whoever created this. Because then, I will just interfere with this place directly! Dimensional Shaping!"

As he cast this new magic, the entire school seemed to...shake might not be the right word, but rather shiver. Akira lacked raw power, but he made up for it by having a variety of tricks. And as some tricks worked exceptionally well on certain opponents, that could easily allow him to make up for the raw power with intelligent thinking and strategy.

The Minotaurs were surprised when the floor itself started to try and swallow them whole, but they broke free and tried to cut down Akira. Akira was able to dodge the two, but in a surprising twist their mouths began to have a red glow to them and then they spewed out fire down the entire corridor.

Swinging his leg around, he created a shield of ice from the line he drew and protected himself. But to make things more difficult, one of the Minotaurs suddenly teleported behind him and grabbed Akira by the arms while the other charged with the axe. Even if Akira used Physical Boost magic, he could not outpower a normal Minotaur let alone an enhanced one.

"Activate Noble Phantasm: Fool's Luck!"

And so he resorted to using his Noble Phantasm, Fool's Luck. The Minotaur that was charging him ended up tripping on the very wire that had entangled it before, falling to the ground on his own axe. Akira then used his entire body as a current and became engulfed in electricity, electrocuting the other Minotaur until it dropped dead on the ground.

Akira/Jack finally had some time to take a break and relax...

"Please be warned. Two Hall Monitors have fallen. To deal with the growing situation, three new Hall Monitors will be called to take their place".

And then he realized he did not have that much time.

"At least I am not weakened anymore...but still, I wonder who was taken hostage? I hope Gil and that other Jack find the Core soon".

 _"Shouldn't we look for the hostage?"_

"No way. In the first place, since we left Bray, Jean, Leena, and Alex back inside my territory, that leaves either Okija or Cross as the hostage. I know it worked out well for the other two, but...I would rather not drag people into this fight".

 _"I suppose. Although Ojichan would probably be cool with it, I don't even know how Cross would react...well, he is not a bad person I think but with this shock who knows what would happen..."_

"Yeah...probably..."

 _"Hey! What is with that half assed answer...and hold on, are you keeping something from me?! THat should be impossible, we are not even separate minds! Just different personalities of the same mind that have yet to fuse together after re-awakening our memories!"_

"Akira...although its true we will eventually fuse, don't think that excuse will work on me. We both know this is a side effect of being summoned by a broken Grail...our mind is shattered".

 _"...shut up...and don't change the subject!"_

"If you must know...I just feel like Cross has been acting weird ever since we awakened. I am not sure that guy is entirely uninvolved".

 _"Cross-san is a nice person! A bit distant, but nice!"_

Suddenly, three vortexes appeared on the ground in front of them.

"Conversation terminated. It looks like they are here".

==Gil POV==

"No luck here either...damnit, where the hell could the core be?"

"Where is...mama?"

The two of them had so far struck out in finding either the hostages or the Master of Assassin, despite searching this place all over. For a moment they heard the sounds of combat stop back where Akira was, but after a minute or two it started again. They had to hurry, even if Akira was restored to full strength it would only be a matter of time before Akira ran out of mana.

Gil supposed they should count themselves lucky it was not the other Assassin the Grail summoned...actually, Gil was a bit questioning on why it didn't do that but figured maybe he was out of range or perhaps his Grail fragment somehow protected them.

"Okay...okay...what would be considered the heart of a school".

"No clue, never went".

"...me neither".

Unfortunately, as neither of them had ever actually attended school before both had no idea where to look or even what to look for. It was a complete and total mystery of what to look for. And because their were hostages, disregarding their weakened state, they couldn't just go around and destroy everything. It was a perfect trap in that sense. However, based on the announcements and a few of the traps so far it appeared this place worked on some set of rules.

As such, they were completely and utterly hopeless when it came to this situation. They could only search room by room till they found either the hostages or the core.

So they continued forward, and began to open the next door...when suddenly some weird tendrils shot out and grabbed them by their wrists and ankles, pulling them inside. It appeared what they entered now was a shower and changing room that connected back to the gym. It appeared to be the boy's changing room, but the trap apparently did not discriminate against gender since Jack was also pulled in.

The tendrils were trying to pull away their weapons and clothing/armor, but before such a scene occurred Gil activated his Gates of Babylon and destroyed the tendrils with his weapons. And yet in response, more Tendrils began to spawn. But more importantly, there was another woman already trapped in the group boys shower room. She was still unharmed though and fully clothed, but the Tendrils had completely wrapped around her and she was unconscious. And of course, above her was the core.

"...I don't know much about schools, but is the changing room really the place a core should be in? I was going to suggest the boiler room next".

"Cafeteria was my guess".

"Right...so I guess we cant use any power attacks to destroy the core can we...but there is only one hostage here it seems".

Actually, Gil was only expecting two hostages. One for the Assassin Jack, and one for Akira. He already knew there was no hostages that would work for him...well, Akira maybe. But since he was already with them, that was out of the question.

Well, Assassin's Master was right there. Actually, Gil knew if he did unleash a power attack he could kill Assassin's Master, destroy the core, and therefore remove two threats at once. But Gil was a man of his word, and they had established a truce until the Master was saved and the core destroyed. Not to mention Akira/Jack would be furious with him. And that other Assassin, John Wilkes Booth, would probably somehow learn of it and use it to distract and irritate them both at a problematic time.

"So then...how do we deal with this?"

"This is...a shower room right?"

"Yeah..."

"Well when it attacked us it mainly tried to take our stuff away, so maybe if we just walk in there butt naked it wont attack?"

"...that is totally a trap, right?"

Gil meant that in more way then one, but he neglected to realize the abnormality that is Jack the Ripper as she was being serious.

"Then, what do we do?"

Gil brought out two sword, and the Tendrils seemed to react in kind by growing more of themselves.

"Isn't it obvious? We show this damn thing how hard we are willing to fight!"

And so, the two charged the core with fierceness and determination.

==John Booth POV==

"Any ideas, Robin Hood?"

While the situation was going on at school, First Asssassin John Wilkes Booth and Archer Robin Hood were currently dealing with their own situation. It was not well known in the slightest, but Robin Hood actually knew of druid practices and magic. As such, while he could not track Grail pieces easily, they thought with the Grail fragment they might be able to do something.

However, what they found was far stranger.

"It appears...the Grail is forming a consciousness. Well, in a way it always had one, but this is different. More advanced. It appears to be aware to some degree of the situation, and plans to strike out. Unfortunately, the current method it is using cannot be tracked, at least not easily. It would take me at least a week to find it...however..."

The way he said however made Assassin grin.

"This will keep them distracted and occupied?"

"Indeed. It seems that it is more concerned about the one from its memory that fought the Guardian, Caster. So although they will be random and sparatic, it should focus around him and give us time to move and act".

"Then, in that case perhaps it is time we got more information from the ones watching us".

"The Mage's Association..."

"Yes, them too...but I meant the one person who seemed to be acting completely different then others of their type. I think it is time we pay the Berserker, Fafnir, a visit".

And so the two most villainous "Heroic" Spirits moved forward, with a new goal in mind. The Dwarf Prince turned Dragon, the Berserker Fafnir.


	27. FateBroken V2 C8

Fate/Broken V2 C8: Breaking Realms

AN: Flus suck. Stupid Flu Season.

==Akira POV==

Akira was just putting down the twentieth minotaur when suddenly, he felt the entire building shift and shake as if it was returning to normal.

Well, almost normal. Deep down, he could feel it. The laylines under the school were still surging with activity, and for that matter it seemed to stretch throughout the entire city. He could onlt get a rough reading, not unless he visited each junction from each of the laylines, but from what he could tell there was a surprising amount of energy surging through the city.

"What the hell is..."

"Oi! I am back! How did...huh?"

As Akira started to analyze and read the laylines in this area as best he could, Gil returned. However, the other Jack was nowhere to be seen.

"Where did..."

"Took her Master and ran. Her master had been trapped right under the core, so once the core was destroyed she was freed. I guess we should have expected as much from an Assassin".

"Hey hey".

"Oh right, I guess you would qualify for one as well".

"Yeah well...anyways, did you find any others?"

"No. It my be possible only she had someone here to rescue after all".

"I suppose...well, it was guaranteed you would not have anyone here".

"Well yeah, I suppose that is true".

WHile the two conversed like that, the Minotaur bodies dissolved as their mana source was no longer in existence. However, Akira and Gil still left as soon as possible due to the fact that...well, they didn't want to stand around in a school all day.

But there was something that was continueing to trouble Akira to not end. Something he couldn't quite ignore.

"The fact was, this was a random event. But...for it to happen in that school..."

"It seems like the random event was targeting you?"

"Yeah. It seems like it was targeting me. I mean, it went out of the way to call us there but the truth is that it was created randomly".

"I see...so then, it is probably another Grail fragment?"

"Probably. I wonder how many fragments there are even?"

"Or how many events they would trigger".

The fact was, neither of them actually knew how many fragments the Grail had broken into, or even what broke the Grail in the first place. It was all a mystery, and it was a mystery they knew they probably had to solve in order to resolve whatever was going on here.

"The fact was, this was a random event. But...for it to happen in that school..."

"It seems like the random event was targeting you?"

"Wait...didn't we..."

The two immediately looked around when they noticed that they were repeating themselves with a sense of deja-vu. Normally people might not notice they were in a time loop like that, but Akira had high magic resistance and so did Gil. But they were also just exceptional even among heroes. Jack's legend was so great it was scattered across the ages and took the form of multiple different characters. And Gil was known as the King of Heroes.

They were basically overly speced even before becoming Servants, and now they were just broken. Of course, given that everyone else seemed to have some sort of broken ability or another, it actually balanced itself out a bit. Assassin, not Jack the Ripper but the other one, had a weapon that bypassed all defenses, and Archer's ability with traps let him set bombs, likely loaded with magic power to make them extra harmful.

Although Akira hated the two of them, thinking about this now made him wonder where they were exactly...

==Assassin POV==

"So this is the place?"

"Yeah"

"How did you even find this place?"

"It really isn't possible to hide from an Assassin you see. Well, it helps that he has been spying on us as well".

Two people, Assassin and Archer, walked into the room in front of them as they conversed in such a manner. It was the lobby to a large office building, Dragon Dwarf Inc. It made Assassin wonder if this was the Grail's way of being funny, because it sure didn't seem like a coincidence.

There were members of security and staff that were moving in front of the two, but they stood no chance against two Heroic Spirits. As they were told various things like they were not allowed to be there or that they should leave, eventually two security guards blocked their path.

But before then, the doors suddenly locked behind them and the shutters on every window closed. Now this, Assassin did not like.

"Well well, what do we have here...could it be, Assassin and Archer?"

"Let us in, Fafnir".

"I don't think so...ah, John Wilkes Booth and Robin Hood is it?"

Assassin could not help but tense up even further. After all, although Assassin had an ability to learn the True Names and Noble Phantasms of the others, this was Berserker they were dealing with. Fafnir no less. He would have a lot of power yes, but Assassin figured they could win with surprises and tricks. But it appeared that the enemy had expected them for a And of course, it was Berserker.

"YOu seem oddly calm for a Berserker..."

"Well, why would I not be calm? Although it is true that is the case commonly seen, not all Berserkers have to go out of control. And not all madness is the one that drives them to do such. There are other forms of madness..."

Assassin clicked his tongue as he started to get a bad feeling from the room and the people around them. Berserker was just talking upfront about all this, with all of these people here, but no one seemed shocked or panicked. Assassin had only found Berserker because he heard about the incident, thought it might be a servant and decided to investigate. That was how he saw Berserker, when he was leaving the area, and then he thoroughly investigated him.

But it appeared that Berserker was actually the one more in control of things then everyone else. Although one couldn't really blame him given this situation that he had no way of expecting, it was still quite problematic. A calm Berserker who could still use his strength, and apparently a large collection of loyal followers who knew about the situation. Even if you combined their efforts, both Akira's group and Assassin's group had been overshadowed by the one person who shouldn't have this level of planning ability and thought.

"Now then, I suppose it is time we show what happens to thieves and murderers who enter without invitation".

And then surely enough, every single person in the room activated their magic circuits.

Every single person in that room was a mage capable of magecraft. In other words...

This Business was actually run my mages, and used magic to create their products. Perhaps that should be expected though, of someone who was a prince in his past life.

Assassin and Archer immediately pushed off the ground and tried to gain as much distance from the army of mages as they could. But on the ceiling, every single light changed colors and revealed a magic circle. At the same time, the mages below used countless forms of basic attacks, lightning bolts and fireballs, and sent them at the two. Although they were Heroic Spirits who were Servants, even if the rules had changed and they did not have Masters, and might even be weaker then if they were summoned normally, the sheer number of attacks would still be enough to inflict damage on them. The shutters also seemed to be magically reinforced and warded, and they could feel even more powerful sources of mana coming down.

Assassin began firing his weapons at the crowd of people, but they either dodged or did something even more unexpected. Assassin's weapons could bypass any defenses and barriers, but what some of them did was throw objects to intercept them. Certainly, the shots could bypass any defenses. But obviously once they hit something they would stop, because if they didn't they would just keep going through every wall, building, the ground, through the planet possibly even. And since they were not really defenses, but rather random thrown objects, the bullets would just obliterate them and not pass through.

Archer meanwhile fired off a barrage of arrows at the group, but a few worked together to create a Magic Barrier strong enough to repel the attacks. Even if one could not do the job, they did not hesitate to work together.

"Just what the hell..."

It could not be helped that the two were feeling pressure. Berserker was out of the norm. Although Akira too started with magic and even an established territory, what Berserker seemed to have started with was clearly not normal. He had an army of mages, a corporation with untold power, and the ability to gather intelligence effectively. Before this, Assassin thought that it would be easier to eliminate Berserker with the two of them then deal with Akira's group, but that was clearly wrong now.

Berserker was much, much more dangerous.

Furthermore, this was clearly all a trap from the beginning. Normally, Assassin would have preferred to not even enter the building, and wait to hit him in transit somewhere or just as he was leaving. But an issue occurred with that. He apparently lived in this building, and kept his schedule erratic and unpredictable. But that...it was all just to lure them in.

Of course, they considered having Robin bomb the building as well, but that also caused issues. It would draw a lot of attention, and Berserker would see them coming.

So they decided to go in the middle of the day, without any roundabout or unnecessary complications, take him out quickly, and be done.

Just as Berserker wanted them to.

The two managed to avoid taking any critical amount of damage, but these strange objects floated out of gaps in the walls that seemed to open up, and appeared to be some sort of automatic magus cannon as they started firing powerful magic blasts at them.

"Robin! Now!"

But luckily, even if this situation had caught them off guard they were not fools either, and had certain plans prepared in case something strange happened. Of course, they didn't expect to need it this early granted, but at this point they would not survive another five minutes otherwise.

And on that note, explosions went off around the perimeter of the building. Not minor ones either, but major ones. Ones that were sure to produce casualties to any random pedestrians around.

This was originally meant to serve as a distraction, but instead they were going to use it as an escape.

The explosions ended up causing heavy damage and did their job of opening up a hole in one of the walls. It was small though, because of the reinforcement magic and the base materials used to start with, but Robin's traps also had magic so it worked out. The two immediately made a dart for the nearest escape...

"Oh, did you think it would be that easy?"

But they were stopped by a short, stocky looking man with a beard holding a Warhammer in both hands.

The two of them who knew this was already, but they could not help but mutter it.

"Berserker Fafnir..."

"I don't think I will need my Dragon Form to fight this battle..."

And so the battle between two Heroic Spirits against a Heroic Spirit with an army at his side truly began there...

(Sorry for the delay, the Flu kept me sick and I had some other stuff to take care of. Well, I cant promise any exact schedule still since the holidays are over anyways and things will be happening, but usually it wont take me over a week to update...anyways, hope you enjoyed!)


	28. FateBroken V2 C9

Fate/Broken V2 C9: Showdown

Assassin and Archer barely had time to dodge as the attack came down from above, the Warhammer crushing the ground where they once stood and the shockwave still managing to blow them away. It appeared that some sort of barrier was raised around the tower though, so no one could tell what was going on from the outside and it probably also had people subconsciously avoid the building.

In other words, he had no reason to worry about being revealed.

"Shit, this is bad".

"How the hell did he get down from the top?"

"You know I can fly right?"

"Fuck".

"Shit".

When those two heard that, they immediately darted in different directions so that those heavy attacks could not target both of them. They barely dodged the next attack, but other magic was then fired upon them.

"How the hell does a Berserker get an army?! And Fafnir of all people?!"

"Don't tell me you forgot I was Dwarvern Royalty now?"

In terms of Noble Phantasms, Fafnir the Dragon should not have any, especially as a Berserker, that could get him minions like this. However, Fafnir the Dwarvern Prince would have natural charisma, leadership ability, and such. He would have been educated in tactics, siege warfare, fortress defense, and such from a young age. Of course, more people would know him as a Dragon, so Fafnir the Dragon would normally be the one summoned. But this Holy Grail War did not have Masters choose the images they went for, whoever and whatever got summoned. John Wilkes Booth, Jack the Trickster, the non-idealized Robin Hood, and now Fafnir the Dwarvern Prince.

In other words, there was no real constraints on who or what was summoned. Hell, Santa Clause somehow got summoned. And he shouldn't even be dead, which means that either something happened in the North Pole or you don't necessarily have to be dead to become a Heroic Spirit here. Or a whole array of other possibilities, for that matter.

As such, they were now dealing with a Dwarf that overcame them in power, ability, and tactics. However...

"It doesn't matter how strong your defense is!"

John Wilkes Booth had guns that bypassed all defenses. It had the potential to kill a Servant in one shot if he hit the head. And therefore, by Fafnir charging them like this he had the perfect headshot. So he fired his guns and scored a direct headshot.

But Fafnir did not die. He just took the bullets, and brushed them off of his cheek. No, there were marks, indication that it hit and did damage. But Fafnir did not die.

"Its true they can bypass defenses. But unfortunately for you, as a Dwarf, as a Dragon, and as a Berserker, its not my defenses you should be concerned about so much as my sheer vitality. Think of it as...hit points of a game character, if you will".

Berserker could not go down that easily. In terms of matchups, this was the worst possible outcome for an Assassin.

Archer however who Berserker did not focus on was able to get off a volley of good shots, bombarding Fafnir and allowing Assassin to gain some distance. It was true that at this rate, they were losing badly. Assassin's ultimate attack could not kill Berserker in one shot, and he had countless forces supporting and assisting him by also firing upon them.

This was not a fight, it was a trap, a one sided slaughter that they could not hope to win against. They had to retreat.

"But just so you know, you have to come here eventually even if you do escape".

"What the hell do you mean?"

"I already have a Grail Fragment".

Those words practically made them keel over from shock.

"And much like our Caster friend, I also know how to seal fragments. How interesting, that he ended up as the Caster and not Assassin..."

Fafnir seemed to reminisce about something as he continued his assault. But Assassin and Archer were notably getting worse, unfocused by Fafnir's words.

Assassin realized that too, and clicked his tongue.

"Whether its true or not, he likely just said that to throw us off! Stay focused, Robin!"

"I know..."

Archer quickly kept the barrage on Fafnir and his allies, who had created a barrier to hide behind. Actually, there were multiple barriers of multiple type and layering, so it was rather annoying. And their long range attacks were also quite troublesome.

But the idea that Berserker had a Grail fragment had really put the shock on them. If it was true, then they would have to go against Fafnir again eventually. However, the two knew retreat was the best option. In this situation, the tables had been turned on them. Someone with royal class education and training was their opponent. And if true, Berserker might have sanity and reasoning to spare. The reason he hadn't yet was because he had an army of forces he could lead, and use them to monitor everyone and everything.

They were probably already monitoring Akira somehow, even though when Assassin and Archer tried it ended up being quite tricky. It appeared that there were sections of the city where it was impossible, likely due to the Territory Creation that Casters possessed. Or maybe, it was not just that but also an ability that Akira himself had possessed as a person.

Either way, it meant Assassin could not target Akira at his home, and now even Berserker had a home field advantage. Assassin's relied on Stealth, and often Archers used distance and range to destroy their opponents and get the first attack. In this situation, every advantage they had, every plan they made, it was anticipated and taken away. ANd they were not half baked either, but the person in front of them was someone who had been raised to lead a kingdom.

A victory was impossible for them. They had to retreat.

But Berserker was making sure not to let them. ANd so as he swung his hammer around...

Assassin ducked under it while taking out a knife, quickly snapping back up and stabbing him right in the hand. He knew that Fafnir's vitality would not let that do much, but at the very least it would get in his way.

At that time, Archer launched two arrows right at his eyes. The same he did with the other dragon earlier. He scored a direct hit on both, but neither actually penetrated. It just hurt him a lot. However, Archer's real goal was to blind him and that did work. Fafnir had confidence in his vitality, but it seems tricks like this might let them escape.

Assassin then went to the side and fired his weapons at the barrier. Although they had to throw objects to not get hit themselves, it stopped the barrage of attacks on them. Archer meanwhile threw a powder into Fafnir's face. It probably would not do much, but it would help slow him down a bit more. And with that, the two bolted towards the exit they made.

The one advantage they had was that there were two of them, two servants. This let them coordinate their attacks and fight off Fafnir enough, covering each other, to survive and then manage to escape. But, if Fafnir was the tactical genius they suspected each trick they used just now would only work that once. In other words, if they fought again it would be their loss. But it was really impossible for an Assassin and an Archer to match a Berserker in close quarters combat anyways. Servant battles were not typically long, drawn out battles, but a series of small skirmishes. Yet, Akira was gathering forces under his banner, and Fafnir had an army.

It looked like this was going to be a long game. And that was disadvantageous for them.

"We may need to gather more allies. If more then one Assassin was summoned, and that Rider was not the original etiehr more likely given how flashy he was, there are likely others. Maybe...just maybe we can somehow get Caster on our side, but..."

"...it would mean someone does not get their wish. But, if we discover who they are, we might be able to at least have them go up against either of them for us, weaken them up for us to strike".

"Then, I suppose we will need to blend in and search for the other possible servants that might appear. I wonder though...will it really be just two of each either?"

"I hope all to hell this does not end up as an Endless Grail War...that would be annoying".

The two conversed like that while running for their lives. Even though they were well outside the barrier now, they had no idea of Fafnir's true power and reach and decided to be safe and get as much distance as possible.

"But if he actually does have a Grail Fragment, then we mught be really fucked".

"Maybe...but, if he was able to do it then maybe it is not overly difficult..."

(Well, that was exciting! Sorry if its a bit short, but there really wasn't anything else to add here...well, still! Hope you enjoyed!)


	29. FateBroken V2 C10

Fate/Broken V2 C10: Remembrance

AN: So, if anyone is wondering I have some sort of pattern to my posting or releasing of chapters...it basically follows whatever I feel like doing, or whatever my creativity feels like doing. Sorry if that sounds unreliable, but I find it difficult to force out something if I dont have a flow for it. But my creativity is constantly changing, evolving, and adapting, so you shouldn't worry. It will always come back around.

==Akira POV==

"You wont beat me that easily!"

"Ha! I beat you every time at this!"

While the battle was concluding between Fafnir, Booth, and Robin, Akira and Gil were facing each other in basketball. Of course, the two were concerned about the event that happened before. But Akira had a magic program running on his computer, that would make use of the phone lines to try and determine any potential clues and information they could gather.

In other words, he wrote a program, had a computer run it, and was now spending the time playing with Gil. After all, his ultimate desire was to enjoy life here. Sure, there was the Grail, the threat of other servants. Apparently more then one of each Servant might be around. But, Akira had no intention to let go of his desire of fun and play even for a moment.

And so, Akira and Gil were playing against each other in a game of basketball. No magic, no special abilities, just basketball...with Servant level stats of course.

And so, when they clashed, ran into each other, stole the ball from each other, some damage was done. Not to them, but everything else.

"Ha...ha...oh..."

After they had been playing like this for about an hour, Akira noticed their clothes were barely holding together. The basketball yard they were playing at was in the back of their building, so it was inside the Territory. It also meant there was no one around to look at them use magic. He took out a marble, and dropped it to the ground. A large amount of luggage popped out, including spare clothes.

"Copycat".

Gil said that as he used his Gates of Babylon, which was where he held a lot of everything, to pull out new clothes to wear as well. They changed out the damaged stuff with the fresh stuff, using this high level magic for such a mundane purpose.

"Magic really is nice and convienent".

"Jack, that right there...proof of why are are known as lazy, and why you are a Caster".

Of course, Gil was saying that while doing the exact same thing, but it was fine. There was no one around to watch them, and it was impossible for remote spying on them inside the territory.

That did not mean they weren't being cautious, but all of the people who would mean them harm would be detected inside this territory, and their senses were acute enough to detect any possible intruders coming towards them.

So, they could use magic and change like this without any concern.

Once they were done, Akira used magic to restore the field and the ball.

"Alright, what next? Watch a movie? Play video games? Nap?"

"...okay, don't you think you are going a bit too far now?"

"Sorry, but I just want to relax you know? We are going to get dragged into this eventually, so I want to have some fun so its not all constant booms and explosions and chasing Grail fragments".

"Sigh...you are the same as always Jack. Serious in the moment, but otherwise for the most part...completely and totally lazy".

"Hey! I was pretty dependable in that fight against that Shirou guy!"

"Only because we weakened him and he was not expecting a new combatant to arrive!"

As we talked about recent events, Akira temporarily thought back to that moment...

Akira clenched his fist, and Jack took the stage. In truth, because of the memory glitch their personalities were still divided to some extent. They were seamlessly merging, but it would be a bit glitched for awhile. But right now, it was Jack that was in full control.

"Activate Noble Phantasm: Realm of the Storyteller!"

Suddenly, the setting changed around them as Akira's mana flared up. A beanstalk grew out from the center, Gil, Bray, and Jean were hidden by a huge mass of what appeared to be clouds, and it left only Jack, Shirou, and the Chalice in view.

And then, the two lunched at each other. Jack swung his staff around to meet the blades that would spawn, but at that time Jack's eyes began to glow blue. As Jack the Trickster was the embodiment of many different Jacks, this included characters such as Jack Frost. At this moment, the floors, ceilings, and walls as well as every bit of stone in this room froze.

Shirou clashed his blades against Jack's staff, but when he tried to make blades come out of the ground they would not budge. To be exact, they were frozen in place and could not bypass the ice that Jack had covered this room with.

"Well done...but I am not beat yet".

As Akira brought that up, Gil shook his head.

"Yes, you pulled all of us out so that in the moment you do actually do something, you hog all the glory for yourself".

"Wh..what?! No! It was to protect you! And besides, I was really epic there!"

"You are forgetting one part though..."

Gil then brought up the part where that entire fight was his stage to start with...

"Gil, you must be slacking with your training. You couldn't win three versus one".

"Oh shut up, you are way more lazy then me. I can take you on now".

"Well, we can leave that up for later. After all, I am extremely pissed off that this guy beat up my friends so badly".

"You really think you can fight me? They had three people, and they lost".

"No, they did not lose...I understand Gil's plan fully. You are right, one versus one, I could not defeat you. But even if you have unlimited mana and unlimited blades, you are not at one hundred percent are you?"

It was at that moment that Shirou finally understood what Gil had meant when he said to do as much damage as possible. Because Shirou was confident he could defeat all of them, partially because in his mind he felt like he had no choice, that he could only be a Hero of Justice if he beat them, he had not considered paying too much attention to defense. Of course, if he could avoid a blow he would, but he had played less cautiously because he believed, and knew, that he would win.

In his current condition, where he had not even started to heal yet, this was not a true 1v1 fight. This had been a 4v1 fight where the last member had essentially been held back so that the one would expend a large amount of energy without thinking about him and end up being in a weakened state.

That had been Gil's plan all along. He knew Akira/Jack would come, and on purposefully focused on holding out long enough to give Akira time to show up after learning he was Jack, and dealing as much damage to make his friend's job easier. ANd of course, Akira was angry at seeing them in such a state, which for him might actually make him stronger. Because now he was Jack, and he was pissed.

As Gil brought up that entire moment, Akira looked away.

"It still required me doing work".

"You had an emotional investment then! And, we did most of the work!"

"Yeah...you three".

"Yeah, but you were still at one hundred percent. Furthermore, he had no idea what to expect from you I bet because I think the Grail could not accurately predict your movements from your own memory loss! It scanned your brain, but the missing memories made it impossible for it to know how to fight you!"

"Err, pretty sure that was the tactics I used and that I outsmarted it".

Although it might sound like the two were argueing, Akira and Gil were both smiling as they conversed. To them, this was a normal friendly conversation. They would talk like this, then sit down at the dining table and eat dinner together, maybe argue at the same time, and then watch a movie or play video games or something.

"You should at least be concerned about that weird deja vu moment we had earlier!"

"Actually..."

Now that they thought about it, just now they were remembering things almost as if they were actually there. The two looked at each other with a bit of concern.

"Oi, Akira. Inside your territory..."

"Yeah, if that was not normal remembering, and it probably wasn't, then in that case..."

"Whatever is going on might be spreading through the whole city?"

A magical anomaly spreading throughout the entire city...now that they thought about it, it certainly would make sense if they considered one possibility.

"The Second Caster is active".

==Zemenar POV==

The time space was already breaking apart at a rate he did not quite expect. For now, nothing serious would happen. Maybe nothing serious at all would happen. After all, Zemenar really held no interest in the others truly. Only if this failed, would he have a reason to move.

He was Zemenar, a wizard that was written about and then claimed to be a fictional character, with hair and a long beard which were both gray. He was a wizard who would do anything and everything to do what he wanted. And right now, he only wanted one thing.

He wanted his son back. He had been brought into this world, but his son had not. As a father, he wanted to help his son regardless of what it would do to others. A few time anomalies would not matter. Maybe he could even bring his son back as someone with higher intelligence, better magical abilities. Anything that would help him along.

At first, Zemenar considered going after the Grail and using that wish to bring his son back. But, he felt no strong tie to the Grail though he could probably track down a location or two if he tried. He did sense the presence of another Caster, but the Caster was wise and had himself hidden and concealed.

Therefore, instead of facing against dangerous and powerful foes, Zemenar would instead use the overflowing leylines of this world and cast a great spell here. There was some strange magical vortex floating above the city, but that was useful for Zemenar. Without the powerful leylines of this island, and that vortex overhead, it would be impossible for his spell to work.

He would bring his son back, and then he would make sure they prospered in this world. No matter what happened, no matter who suffered, this was Zemenar's only wish.

So if it turned out this would fail, and he would have to fight them, then so be it. He would overcharge this spell and use this magic to bring about their destruction, and even the destruction of the entire city if he had to.

Out of everyone that had entered this Grail War, he might just be the most dangerous threat yet. And that was because he wasn't evil, or good. He was someone who had a family.

(Woot! Some interesting stuff is coming, and the Second Caster is finally revealed! Muhahahaha...I wonder, how will it progress form here? Guess you have to stay tuned!)


End file.
